Germany fights for Rubens

Germany renewed its demand last night for the return from Moscow of a priceless Rubens oil painting that mysteriously vanished during the second world war. The Russian businessman who is refusing to give it back was threatened with legal action. The Germans have been trying to get the Rubens back since a consortium of businessmen offered it for sale last year. It disappeared in 1945 from a castle near Berlin.
The Russian businessman who now says he "owns" the painting, Vladimir Logvinenko, insists he bought it legitimately in 1999 from a Russian antiques dealer. Two months ago a court in Germany ruled that the German government had not produced enough evidence to show the Rubens was stolen.
It appears that a Russian officer acquired the painting in April 1945 as the Red Army overwhelmed Nazi Germany - possibly from a country mansion belonging to Joseph Goebbels, where it had hung in the bedroom of one of the Nazi propaganda minister's many lovers.
Art experts agree that despite its poor condition it is worth around 55 million pounds.
Earlier this year Russia's prosecutor general's office ruled that Mr Logvinenko was the Rubens' rightful owner, and said he didn't break any Russian law in acquiring it. Pieces of art stolen by Soviet troops from Germany remain a sensitive subject in Russia.
Many Russians regard them as compensation for the devastation caused by Hitler's invasion. Germany has been negotiating with Russia since 1991 for the restitution of some 200,000 artefacts, while Russia has claims on icons and other artworks stolen by German troops earlier in the war.
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Irish Art