Former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has lost a legal challenge to rescind sanctions imposed on him by the European Union following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The EU General Court upheld the restrictions which were brought in March 2022 on the Russian billionaire, who had filed a legal challenge. Abramovich can appeal the ruling.
The EU said at the time of sanctioning in March 2022 that Abramovich “has had privileged access to the president (Vladimir Putin), and has maintained very good relations with him. This connection with the Russian leader helped him to maintain his considerable wealth.”
Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government in the same month, and he was described as a “pro-Kremlin oligarch.”
Abramovich’s bid to overturn the sanctions was rejected by the court in Luxembourg on Wednesday, as was his claim of a “disproportionate infringement” to move freely in the EU due to him holding Portuguese citizenship, while he was also unsuccessful with his claim for compensation.
The court noted in their ruling of Abramovich’s role in the Russian company Evraz and how the steel manufacturing and mining business provided a major source of revenue to the Russian government.
“The General Court dismisses the action brought by Mr. Abramovich, thereby upholding the restrictive measures taken against him,” the court ruled on Wednesday.
“The Council did not in fact err in its assessment by deciding to include then maintain Mr. Abramovich’s name on the lists at issue, in the light of his role in the Evraz group and, in particular, its parent company.”
The EU had argued that Abramovich’s economic activities had provided a substantial revenue stream for the Russian government and had therefore assisted them in the invasion of Ukraine.
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“He is a major shareholder of the steel group Evraz, which is one of Russia’s largest taxpayers,” the European Council said at the time. “He has therefore been benefitting from Russian decision-makers responsible for the annexation of Crimea or the destabilization of Ukraine.”
A statement was issued on Abramovich’s behalf after Wednesday’s ruling, which read: “Although we are disappointed with today’s ruling, we welcome that the court did not take up several arguments presented by the EU Council and did not include them as a basis for maintaining sanctions.
“Mr. Abramovich does not have the ability to influence the decision-making of any government, including Russia, and has in no way benefitted from the war.”
The British government had taken a similar position to the EU on Evraz and following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, accused the company of “providing financial services or making available funds, economic resources, goods or technology that could contribute to destabilising Ukraine”.
The 10-strong board of directors of Evraz subsequently resigned after the sanctions on Abramovich — who owned a 29 per cent stake in the company — and the Financial Conduct Authority suspended the trading of their shares on the London Stock Exchange.
In March 2022, the Premier League disqualified Abramovich as director of Chelsea, with the club subsequently sold to a new ownership group led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital two months later.
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(Cem Ozdel/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)