EU Delists 2 Russian Billionaires as It Extends Nearly 3,000 Sanctions for 3 Years
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Sep 22
EU Delists 2 Russian Billionaires as It Extends Nearly 3,000 Sanctions for 3 Years
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Sep 22
Summary
A last-minute EU compromise removed Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman from the Russia blacklist before Tuesday’s deadline, while preserving sanctions on nearly 3,000 other people and companies for 36 months.
France pushed to delist Usmanov on national-security grounds tied to a reported prisoner swap involving French nationals in Azerbaijan, and Luxembourg sought the same for Fridman as he sues over $16 billion in frozen assets.
Latvia, which had objected on Monday ahead of its 3 October election, ultimately abstained on the two delistings, allowing the bloc’s 27 members to keep the wider blacklist intact under unanimity rules.
Ukraine denounced the move as "unacceptable," with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha saying it rewarded Moscow and exposed divisions inside the EU.
The dispute raises doubts over next month’s planned 1,600 new sanctions designations, after July’s difficult 21st package and this latest fight over how far member states can bend sanctions for national interests.