France and Slovakia's threat to scupper 3,000 EU sanctions to protect two Russian oligarchs gathers steam
"We will be asking for things in return if it goes that way," one EU diplomat told the Kyiv Independent.
A dispute has emerged among EU countries over a proposal to drop EU sanctions against two Russian oligarchs as part of the bloc's 3,000 sanctions against Russia's war on Ukraine. The French and Slovakian governments have led the push to delist Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman from the sanctions list. If the 12-month deadline for renewing the sanctions is not met unanimously, the sanctions will expire entirely.
Slovakia has long demanded the delisting of the two oligarchs but France's recent support has taken them by surprise. The deadlock has led to tense negotiations among EU diplomats, with some reportedly beginning to cave to the French-Slovak demand on the brink of the deadline. Ukraine's sanctions envoy criticized the discussions, stating that sanction delisting while the war continues sends a wrong signal.
Delisting alone may be seen as temporary pressure, and the envoy emphasized the need for accountability and changes in Russia's behavior.
Written by urgent.news from Kyiv Independent's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
