Latvia to auction Moscow House in Riga, proceeds will go to Ukraine

The Latvian government decided to auction off a land plot in the centre of Riga, along with the so-called Moscow House located on it, on 26 March. The building was previously owned by the government of the Russian capital and was nationalised by the decision of the Saeima (the Latvian Parliament).

Source: European Pravda, citing LSM

Details: The Moscow House and the land beneath it will be transferred to the Ministry of Finance, which will allow the sale of this property at auction. The property can only be sold as a whole: both the building and the land. 

The cadastral data from the State Land Service indicates that the land plot price is €517,083, and the building is valued at €2,348,340.

The funds raised at the auction will be allocated to support Ukraine, so special amendments to the law supporting the residents of Ukraine will be submitted to the Saeima.

In the report reviewed by the government, it is emphasised that the property may not be sold quickly.

Background:

• On 11 January, the Latvian Saeima approved a bill for transferring the Moscow House in Riga to state ownership.
• Before its nationalisation, the Moscow House was under the jurisdiction of organisations whose actual owners are Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin.
• The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the decision of the Latvian Saeima regarding the nationalisation of the Moscow House in Riga will not go unanswered. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova promised "harsh and extremely painful" steps in response to Latvia.
• Last December, the Latvian Security Service conducted criminal proceedings at the Moscow House concerning potential violations of EU sanctions against Russia.

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