EU Sanctions Stand: European Court Keeps Yanukovych and Abramovich on Blacklist
Фото: Telegram
The European Court of Justice has rejected appeals by former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, his son Oleksandr, and Russian businessman Roman Abramovich, leaving them subject to EU sanctions, including asset freezes and other restrictive measures.
This was reported by Radio Free Europe journalist Rikard Jozwiak.
According to the correspondent, the court found no grounds to uphold the appeals, meaning that the sanction regime against the Yanukovychs and Abramovich will continue.
Viktor Yanukovych and his son Oleksandr were initially sanctioned in 2014 in connection with a Ukrainian investigation into the embezzlement of state funds on a particularly large scale. The EU imposed an asset freeze to facilitate their potential return to Ukraine. Although the Court of Justice of the EU partially annulled the extension of these sanctions in 2021, Brussels decided in 2025 to maintain them.
Meanwhile, Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich was targeted with EU sanctions following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 due to his close ties to Vladimir Putin. In March 2022, he announced the sale of Chelsea Football Club, which was officially transferred to new owners in May for $5.4 billion. The UK subsequently sought to seize $3.2 billion of that sum for humanitarian aid to Ukraine.
The European Court’s decision underscores the EU’s continued strict sanctions policy against both Viktor Yanukovych’s entourage and Russian oligarchs closely associated with the Kremlin.
By the way, in Ukraine, fugitive President Viktor Yanukovych was sentenced to fifteen years in prison for illegally crossing the border and inciting desertion.
It was previously reported that the son of fugitive President Viktor Yanukovych has ties to the largest supplier of coal from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, which is then sold abroad.
It is worth adding that on December 20, 2023, the Court of Justice of the European Union upheld the claim of fugitive ex-president Viktor Yanukovych and his son Oleksandr, canceling the sanctions imposed against them by the EU Council on March 4, 2021.
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