UK Announces “Historic Round Of Sanctions” On Hundreds Of Russian Oligarchs And Putin’s Political Allies
The government has announced hundreds of new sanctions, including on Petr Aven, the former president of Alfa Bank, the largest private bank in Russia (Alamy)
3 min read
The government has announced hundreds of new sanctions against Russians and Belarussians after new legislation was passed overnight on Monday.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss confirmed that 370 more individuals, 51 of which are oligarchs and their family members, are now subject to measures restricting their finances and assets.
She said this means the UK will now have designated more than 1,000 “individuals, entities, and subsidiaries” under the sanctions regime since Russia invaded Ukraine.
The government said the vast majority of today’s sanctions were made possible under the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act, which was rushed through Parliament in recent days, and gives ministers the power to act urgently, after previous criticism they had not moved quickly enough.
Truss said: “We are going further and faster than ever in hitting those closest to Putin – from major oligarchs, to his Prime Minister, and the propagandists who peddle his lies and disinformation.
“We are holding them to account for their complicity in Russia’s crimes in Ukraine.”
But the government has been accused of “shutting the door after the private jet has bolted”.
Liberal Democrats foreign affairs spokesperson Layla Moran said: “The government has finally got their act together – but we should have been in this position weeks ago. This delay has given Putin’s cronies a priceless window to firesale their assets.”
The individuals sanctioned today will have their assets in the UK frozen which means no UK citizen or company can do business with them and they are also banned from travelling to or from the UK.
Those sanctioned include:
Oligarchs
- Mickhail Fridman, founder of Alfa Bank, the largest private bank in Russia. He also owns shares in LetterOne, an international investment business based in Luxembourg. His net worth is reported as an estimated £11.9billion.
- Petr Aven, who was president of Alfa Bank and co-founder of LetterOne. His net worth is reported an estimated £4billion.
- German Khan, a business partner of Aven and Fridman in both Alfa Bank and LetterOne. His net worth is reported as an estimated £7.8billion.
- Alexey Mordaschov, the majority shareholder in Severstal, Russia’s largest steel and mining company. His net worth is reported as estimated £22.4billion.
- Andrey Melnichenko, the founder of EuroChem Group, one of the world's leading mineral fertilizer producers. Reported estimated net worth of £13.7billion.
- Viktor Vekselberg, owner of the Renova Group, a Russian conglomerate with interests in aluminium, oil, energy, telecoms and other sectors.. His net worth is reported at an estimated £6.8billion.
- Alexander Ponomarenko, chairman of the board of Sheremetyevo, the biggest airport in Russia. His estimated net worth is £2.2billion.
- Dmitry Pumpyansky, owner and chairman of OAO TMK, a steel pipe manufacturer for the oil and gas industry,. His net worth is estimated at £1.84billion.
- Vadim Moshkovich, chairman of the board of directors of Rusagro Group, one of Russia's largest agricultural companies. His net worth is an estimated of £1.84billion.
Political allies
- Dmitry Medvedev, a Russian politician serving as deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. He was also president from 2008 to 2012 and Russian prime minister from 2012 to 2020.
- Mikhail Mishustin, the current Russian Prime Minister and former head of the Federal Taxation Service from 2010-2020. He was also formally the President of the UFG Group (OFG Invest), one of Russia’s largest investment companies.
- Sergei Shoigu, a Russian politician serving as Defence Minister since 2021. He was previously appointed Governor of the Moscow Region.
Propagandists
- Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s press secretary and a Kremlin spokesperson.
- Maria Zakharova, the Director of the Information and Press Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, and official spokesperson.
PoliticsHome Newsletters
PoliticsHome provides the most comprehensive coverage of UK politics anywhere on the web, offering high quality original reporting and analysis: Subscribe
