The European Court of Justice on Thursday confirmed sanctions against five Russian businessmen, rejecting their appeals to unfreeze assets.
Oligarchs’ Appeals Rejected
Dmitry Pumpiansky, Dmitry Mazepin, Tigran Khudaverdyan, Viktor Rashnikov, and German Khan appealed to the ECJ after a lower court dismissed their complaints in 2023. The ECJ ruled the sanctions imposed on the Russian businessmen were justified.
In February 2022, the EU designated the five as leading businesspeople involved in sectors that are a significant source of revenue for the Russian government.
Background of the Sanctioned Individuals
Pumpiansky is the former chairman of TMK, a steel pipe manufacturer. Mazepin was the former owner of Uralchem, a fertilizer company, and Rashnikov owns MMK, a metallurgical giant. Khudaverdyan, an Armenian citizen, formerly headed Russia’s largest internet company, Yandex, while Khan, with Russian and Israeli citizenship, is a co-founder of Alfa Group, Russia’s largest private banking group.
Repeated Legal Challenges
Russian oligarchs frequently challenge sanctions decisions at the EU court. For example, Pumpiansky resigned from his positions after being placed on the EU sanctions list following Russia’s aggression in February 2022.
The EU court annulled the sanctions against him in June 2024, stating that member states had not adequately justified them. The EU subsequently re-added Pumpiansky to the sanctions list, prompting another appeal to the ECJ, which ultimately failed.
Defining “Leading” Businesspeople
In its ruling, the Luxembourg-based court emphasized that the concept of “leading” businesspeople should be understood in the economic context in which they operate, regardless of any potential ties to the Russian government.
Impact on Russian Economy and Ukraine
The court stated that, due to their importance to the Russian economy, these individuals can indirectly contribute to financing actions that destabilize Ukraine, by maintaining the profitability of economic sectors in which they operate and even their further development.
EU Sanctions List
The EU’s blacklist, related to undermining the integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, includes over 2,600 individuals and entities. Sanctioned individuals are barred from entering the EU, and their assets are frozen.
