AGREEMENT REACHED TO REMOVE TWO BILLIONAIRES FROM SANCTIONS LIST

BRUSSELS, SEPTEMBER 22 /SRNA-Reuters/ - EU ambassadors agreed today to remove billionaires Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman from the sanctions list, while extending sanctions against around 3,000 individuals and companies for another three years after Latvia withdrew its veto.

EU representatives had previously agreed to remove the Russian billionaires Usmanov and Fridman from the list in exchange for a three-year extension of the sanctions, but Latvia had opposed the move.

Unanimity among EU member states is required to impose sanctions, and sanctions against Russia had previously been extended for six months.

Latvia ultimately abstained, EU diplomats said, allowing the agreement to be adopted.

France, to the surprise and dismay of several EU member states, joined Slovakia in an initiative to lift sanctions against Russian-Uzbek billionaire Usmanov, citing national security concerns.

Luxembourg subsequently demanded the same treatment for Fridman, who has filed a $16 billion lawsuit against the country.

According to three European diplomats, France asked the EU to lift sanctions against Usmanov following pressure from Azerbaijan, where at least two French nationals have been detained.

An unnamed senior Azerbaijani diplomat rejected the claims.

The EU imposed sanctions on Usmanov and Fridman in 2022.