Navalny urges EU to impose targeted sanctions against Russian billionaires
Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny is urging the European Union to impose personal sanctions against Russian billionaires and oligarchs. He raised this issue while speaking at a meeting of the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee on Friday, November 27.
“So far we didn’t see any real attempts to target oligarchs. When Russian people know that [Alisher] Usmanov, [Roman] Abramovich, you name it, are kicked out of Europe, it will be a celebration in the streets of Russia,” Navalny said.
This comment came in response to a question about how to convince Russian citizens that EU sanctions are not directed against the country’s population.
Navalny has been in Germany since August 2020, when he was evacuated to Berlin’s Charité Hospital for treatment for nerve agent poisoning. Today, Navalny spoke to the European Parliament’s foreign Affairs Committee via video link.
In addition to Navalny, the Foreign Affairs Committee heard from Russian opposition politicians Ilya Yashin and Vladimir Milov, as well as opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza. According to the committee’s press release, the Russian opposition figures and the MEPs “debated the political and socio-economic situation in Russia in view of next year’s parliamentary elections.”
Read more about sanctions
- ‘Accessible only to State authorities’ Here’s how the EU explained its decision to sanction high-level Russian officials over Navalny’s poisoning
- Russia to impose retaliatory sanctions against Germany and France over Navalny poisoning
- Kremlin spokesman says there’s ‘absolutely no clear logic’ behind the EU’s sanctions over Navalny’s poisoning
- Not worth it Russia asks the EU nine questions about Navalny’s poisoning, arguing that he’s too unpopular to warrant assassination and, hey, maybe his own colleagues are responsible
Navalny’s poisoning
Alexey Navalny was on a flight from Tomsk to Moscow when he fell violently ill on August 20. The plane made an emergency landing in Omsk, where he was hospitalized in a coma; two days later he was transferred to Germany for treatment. On September 2, German officials confirmed that Navalny was poisoned with a substance from the Novichok group of nerve agents. Navalny was discharged from the hospital on September 23. Russia denies any involvement in the poisoning.