EU Considers Lifting Sanctions on Russia-Linked Billionaires Amid Ukraine War
EU Debates Sanctions Policy Amid Pressure and Controversy
By Andrew Gray and Philip Blenkinsop
BRUSSELS, Sept 21 (Reuters) - European Union envoys will try again on Tuesday to reach a deal that could lift sanctions on Russia-linked billionaires Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman in return for keeping thousands of other individuals and businesses under sanctions imposed due to the war in Ukraine, diplomats said.
The proposed deal emerged after France and Luxembourg each pushed for one of the men to be removed from the bloc’s sanctions list, apparently for domestic reasons, to the anger of some other EU countries and Ukraine.
After negotiations between ambassadors in Brussels, the proposal was sent to EU governments for approval on Monday evening but at least one country - Latvia - was not willing to sign off on it at that point, people familiar with the matter said.
Asked for comment, a spokesperson for the Latvian Foreign Ministry said: "It will be a joint EU decision and EU positions are still being coordinated."
Latvia has previously taken legal action to try to ensure that Fridman and his business partner Petr Aven, a dual Russian-Latvian citizen, remain under EU sanctions.
Under the proposed deal, sanctions on Usmanov and Fridman would be lifted but those on some 3,000 other Russia-linked individuals and entities would be renewed for three years.
France and Luxembourg Push for Sanctions Relief
France Surprises Partners with Call to Lift Sanctions on Usmanov
To the surprise of many of its EU partners, France this month joined Slovakia in pushing for sanctions to be lifted on Russian-Uzbek businessman Usmanov. Luxembourg then demanded the same treatment for Fridman, a Russian, according to diplomats.
France made its move after coming under what it said was pressure from Azerbaijan, as the country has detained at least two French nationals, three European diplomats told Reuters last week. A senior Azerbaijani diplomat on Friday rejected those assertions.
France's foreign ministry spokesperson, Pascal Confavreux, said last week that France's position on Usmanov — who made his name as a metals and mining mogul — was a matter of national security and in response to a request from partners.
Background: EU Sanctions Following Ukraine Invasion
EU Imposed Sanctions After 2022 Invasion of Ukraine
The EU imposed sanctions - which involve a ban on travel to the bloc and a freeze on assets held in the EU - on both men in 2022, following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
At the time, the EU described Usmanov as having “particularly close ties” to Russian President Vladimir Putin and said Fridman had "supported actions or policies which undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine".
Both men have disputed the cases against them and taken legal action to try to have the sanctions removed.
Legal and Financial Disputes
Fridman is claiming $16 billion from Luxembourg in a case that has gone to arbitration. EU diplomats said Luxembourg argued that its case to maintain EU sanctions on Fridman could be weakened if sanctions were lifted on Usmanov.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Sergii Koretskyi urged the EU not to ease any sanctions on Russia, saying attacks on Ukraine had killed 288 people and wounded 1,781 this month alone.
"Ukraine is under attack right now. Europe cannot treat Russia’s enablers as friends. Sanctions must stay. Full stop," he posted on X.
Usmanov's net worth is estimated at $16.6 billion and Fridman's at $10 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Opposition from Baltic States and Other EU Members
Baltic States and Others Opposed Lifting of Sanctions
Multiple European nations including the Baltic states had opposed lifting sanctions on the two men, arguing it signalled the EU was open to blackmail.
"It would send a lot of signals, and all of them are bad signals," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
"I think this is a really dangerous path, and we should rethink where we are."
Compromise and Renewal Period
However, most opponents appeared willing to accept the deal to get the necessary unanimity to renew the sanctions on the thousands of other Russian-linked individuals and organisations, diplomats said.
In a concession to those nations, the renewal period of 36 months is much longer than the usual 6 or 12 months.
(Reporting by Andrew Gray, Philip Blenkinsop; Additional reporting by Lili Bayer in Brussels and John Irish in New York; Editing by Kevin Liffey, Cynthia Osterman and Daniel Wallis)