Russia is not interested in Polish consulate eviction, but lease disputes need to be resolved - Foreign Ministry official
ST. PETESRBURG. March 19 (Interfax) - The Polish General Consulate in St. Petersburg has not asked the Russian Foreign Ministry's office in St. Petersburg for assistance in resolving economic disputes, Vladimir Zapevalov, Russian Foreign Ministry representative in St. Petersburg, told reporters on Thursday.
"No, there have been no such requests. In accordance with the Vienna Conventions, consulate premises have immunity. For this reason, I hope there will be no eviction in this case," Zapevalov said.
"In any case, the Foreign Ministry insists on that, that there should be no eviction," Zapevalov said.
Zapevalov also said there is no doubt that all financial issues in this situation should be resolved with regard for the positions of all parties involved.
On March 17, the St. Petersburg authorities received a writ of execution under a court ruling on the repayment of the debt for lease and eviction of the Polish General Consulate from the buildings located in the city's Sovetskaya Street 5.
The Polish consulate has declined to comment on the situation.
According to earlier reports, a ruling issued by the Arbitration Court for St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region grating a lawsuit against the Polish General Consulate seeking the recovery of the lease for its buildings located in the center of St. Petersburg took legal force on March 9. The court had ordered the Polish consulate to pay over 72 million rubles in back payments and vacate the buildings it occupies in the city's Sovetskaya Street 5.
The Polish General Consulate in St. Petersburg, which occupies two buildings in the center of the city has not paid the lease since 1993. The buildings located in Sovetskaya Street 5 house the Polish General Consulate services and the Polish institute.
