Deprivation of Property in Public International Law: Distinguishing Nationalization, Expropriation, Requisition, and Confiscation

The study examines the principle of protection of private property as a specific component of international human rights protection and analyzes the legal nature of sovereign measures of property deprivation. It clarifies the grounds and limits of nationalization and expropriation within public international law, distinguishes them from requisition and confiscation by purpose, legal effects, and compensatory character, and articulates conditions of lawfulness: a basis in law, pursuit of a public purpose, non-discrimination, and payment of prompt, adequate and effective compensation where no punitive element is involved. Particular attention is paid to the extraterritorial effect of nationalization statutes and to the relationship between international standards and the civil law of the Russian Federation, including loss recovery. The paper proposes “property deprivation” as an umbrella category covering specific forms of state interference in the private sphere and formulates qualification criteria designed to preserve a fair balance between public and private interests.