The key facts

  • The Russian Supreme Court granted Alexei Yermakov's appeal and refused to return the daughter to her mother in France
  • Previously, three courts had ruled the child's removal to Russia unlawful
  • The child's lawyer called the decision political and expressed concerns about its impact on similar cases

The Essence of the Decision

Russia's Supreme Court granted the appeal of Russian citizen Alexei Yermakov against the ruling on the lawsuit of Veronika Tishkova — a Ukrainian citizen living in France — seeking the child's return to her country of permanent residence. This was reported by TASS, citing case materials. Thus, Yermakov is allowed not to return their shared daughter to her mother.

History of the Conflict

According to Kommersant, Yermakov and Tishkova married in 2018. After the divorce, the daughter lived with her mother in France. In March 2025, the father took the girl abroad without his ex-wife's permission, claiming a vacation in Turkey and Slovakia. He promised the court to return the child within two weeks, but instead brought her to Russia in April.

The Courts' Position

Initially, Russian courts of three instances ruled the child's relocation unlawful. Then the Supreme Court sided with the father, noting, in particular, that France is an 'unfriendly state' that is a member of NATO and the European Union, and that this creates risks for the child.

The Lawyer's Reaction

French lawyer Dmitry Litvinsky, representing the girl's interests, told Kommersant that, in his opinion, the Supreme Court 'placed its own political understanding of the situation above the existing rule of law.' He also fears that Russian courts in similar cases will now primarily take into account the Russian citizenship of one of the parents 'to the detriment of any other circumstances of the case.'