EU faces backlash after lifting sanctions on Russian billionaires - Reuters

The European Union voted on Tuesday to lift asset‑freeze measures and travel bans that had been imposed on Russian‑Uzbek metals magnate Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman, a co‑founder of one of Russia’s largest conglomerates. The decision ends the sanctions that had been part of the bloc’s broader response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The move has prompted criticism from several EU members who argue that it weakens a key pillar of financial pressure supporting Ukraine’s war effort. Some officials have suggested that the decision signals a willingness to yield to external pressure, describing it as potentially undermining the collective sanctions regime.

France played a central role in the negotiations that led to the sanctions being lifted. According to diplomatic contacts, French officials indicated that Azerbaijan was leveraging the Usmanov case to press Paris over the detention of two French citizens in Baku. On the same day, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev pardoned a French national who had been convicted of espionage, describing the act as a “humanitarian gesture.”

Luxembourg, following France’s lead, called for the same treatment to be extended to Fridman, who has filed a $16 billion claim against the EU for the freezing of his assets. Several other governments have expressed that they felt limited options in responding to the French position, leading to broader acceptance of the sanctions relief.

British financier Bill Browder, a long‑time critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, warned that the removal of sanctions could enable sanctioned Russian oligarchs to seek support from authoritarian regimes worldwide in order to secure further relief. He described the decision as opening a “Pandora’s box” for future sanctions policy.