Euronews: France wants to remove Russian oligarch Usmanov from EU sanctions list

France wants to remove Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov from the European Unionʼs sanctions list.

This is what Euronews sources say.

Slovakia has long insisted on removing Usmanov and another Russian businessman Mikhail Fridman from the sanctions list. Now, Paris has also supported this.

According to the interlocutors, this position of France has caused discontent among other EU countries. Member states have raised questions about Parisʼs motives, in particular because of possible economic interests.

At the same time, France may view Usmanovʼs exclusion as a political compromise. Paris allegedly hopes to convince Slovakia to support the continuation of the EU sanctions regime.

• The current EU personal sanctions against Russia are in effect until September 15. To extend them, unanimous consent of all EU member states is required every six months. However, the EU is discussing the possibility of doing so once a year.

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