EU sanctions will be lifted from Usmanov and Fridman: which countries demanded this

The European Union will lift sanctions on Russian billionaires Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman. They will be removed from the list as part of an agreement to extend personal sanctions against Russia for three years.

This was reported by Radio Liberty, citing diplomatic sources in the EU.

The EU Council officially announced that it would remove “individuals” from the list, without naming them. The publication’s sources confirmed that it was Usmanov and Fridman.

Slovakia demanded that sanctions against Usmanov be lifted. This position was also supported by France. Slovakia and Luxembourg advocated for the exclusion of Fridman from the list.

Latvia, on the other hand, was against lifting sanctions on both Russian billionaires. According to diplomats, Riga plans to impose its own national restrictions against them following the EU decision.

Usmanov and Fridman were subject to EU sanctions as major Russian businessmen whom Brussels linked to the Russian government and the war against Ukraine. Both tried to challenge the sanctions in EU courts.

The exclusion of the two businessmen was part of a compromise that allowed EU countries to agree on extending personal sanctions against Russia not for six months, as before, but for three years at once.