applicant's property rights cannot be classified in a precise category. In any event, the situation mentioned in the second sentence of the first paragraph is only a particular instance of interference with the right to peaceful enjoyment of property as guaranteed by the general rule laid down in the first sentence (see Beyeler, cited above, § 106). The case should therefore more appropriately be examined in the light of that general rule (compare Broniowski, cited above, §§ 135 - 136).
60. The Court further reiterates that the boundaries between the State's positive and negative obligations under Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 do not lend themselves to precise definition. The applicable principles are nonetheless similar. Whether the case is analysed in terms of a positive duty of the State or in terms of an interference by a public authority which needs to be justified, the criteria to be applied do not differ in substance. In both contexts regard must be had to the fair balance to be struck between the competing interests of the individual and of the community as a whole. It also holds true that the aims mentioned in that provision may be of some relevance in assessing whether a balance between the demands of the public interest involved and the applicant's fundamental right of property has been struck. In both contexts the State enjoys a certain margin of appreciation in determining the steps to be taken to ensure compliance with the Convention (see Broniowski, cited above, § 144, and Hatton and Others v. the United Kingdom [GC], No. 36022/97, §§ 98 et seq., ECHR 2003-VIII).
61. In the present case the applicant's submission under Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 is that the Russian State, having conferred on it an entitlement to seek redemption of the Urozhay-90 bonds, made it impossible to benefit from that entitlement by failing for years to adopt the implementing regulations. That situation may well be examined in terms of a hindrance to the effective exercise of the right protected by Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 or in terms of a failure to secure the implementation of that right (compare Broniowski, cited above, § 146).
62. The Court will determine whether the conduct of the Russian State was justifiable in the light of the principles of lawfulness, pursuance of a legitimate aim in the public interest and striking of a fair balance between the general interest of the community and the applicant's right to the peaceful enjoyment of its possessions (see, for a detailed description of those principles, Broniowski, cited above, §§ 147 - 151).
3. Compliance with Article 1 of Protocol No. 1
(a) Respect for the principle of lawfulness
63. The Court notes that the application of section 1 of the Commodity Bonds Act in the part concerning the Urozhay-90 bonds was repeatedly suspended through the laws on the federal budget for each successive year (see paragraph 34 above).
64. It is therefore satisfied that an interference with, or a restriction on, the exercise of the applicant's right to the peaceful enjoyment of its possessions was "provided for by law" within the meaning of Article 1 of Protocol No. 1.
(b) Existence of a legitimate aim in the public interest
65. The Government indicated that the restriction on the implementation of the bond-holders' entitlement sought to prevent excessive expenditure from the federal budget. This position was reflected in the decision of the Russian Constitutional Court, which held that the necessity to restrict property rights could arise "in a situation where budgetary resources [were] insufficient to resolve many social problems relating to the exercise of the rights to life and personal dignity" (see paragraph 37 above).
66. The Court observes that in the 1990s the Russian State went through a tumultuous transition from a State-controlled t
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