The EU court rejected the lawsuit of a businessman close to Putin regarding the lifting of sanctions
The Court of the European Union in Luxembourg rejected the lawsuit of the Russian businessman Igor Rotenberg, the son of Arkady Rotenberg, who is close to Vladimir Putin. Rotenberg Jr. denied the EU sanctions imposed against him in connection with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Consideration of the case lasted about a year and a half.
Sanctions against Ihor Rotenberg were introduced in September 2022. In the justification of the decision, it was stated that he is a “leading Russian businessman” as well as the “eldest son and heir” of Arkady Rotenberg, and the entire Rotenberg family is “closely connected to the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin.” Rotenberg Sr. and Putin himself have been included in the EU sanctions list before.
As DW reports, the court considered the plaintiff’s arguments, which relate to the fact that he no longer owns stakes in the companies mentioned in the EU decision. His ties with his father “are exclusively family in nature”, the companies to which he was related received state contracts, which do not indicate that he supports the actions of the Russian authorities in Ukraine. However, the court decided that the very fact of “receiving a benefit” from the Russian authorities responsible for the annexation of Crimea or the “destabilization” of Ukraine can be a criterion for falling under sanctions and there is no need to establish a direct connection between this benefit and the annexation of Crimea or destabilization. The court referred to an earlier decision on the lawsuit of Arkady Rotenberg, which was filed even before the war. Then the court decided that the businessman should remain under sanctions.
