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Latvia blocks EU sanctions relief for Russian businessmen Usmanov and Fridman

Source: Andris Kulbergs

Latvia refused to support a deal that would lift sanctions against Russian businessmen Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman in exchange for a three-year extension of the sanctions list, which includes about 3,000 people and organizations linked to Russia.

“The situation is not simple. Extending the sanctions requires the agreement of all 27 EU member states. If an agreement is not reached by the deadline, sanctions on the entire list, not just on Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman, would be at risk. Extending the sanctions for 36 months would be the right step. However, the price for that should not simply be removing two individuals from the sanctions list,” Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs said.

On September 21, European Union ambassadors agreed that sanctions against Usmanov and Fridman would be lifted if no EU member state objected, Reuters reported, citing European diplomats.

On September 14, EU ambassadors agreed to extend the sanctions list by only one week. The list is renewed every six months, a process that requires agreement from all 27 EU member states.

This time, however, extending the list for six months proved impossible because of disagreements over restrictions on Russian businessmen. Slovakia and France favored lifting the sanctions against Usmanov, while Slovakia, Hungary, and Luxembourg favored lifting the sanctions against Fridman.

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