28 Feb 2022 22:27

EU blacklists Fridman, Aven, Usmanov, Mordashov, Ponomarenko, Tokarev, Sechin, Timchenko

MOSCOW. Feb 28 (Interfax) - The European Union has blacklisted a number of major Russian businessmen.

The freeze of assets and the travel ban will apply, in particular, to Mikhail Fridman (Alfa Group/LetterOne, shares in VEON and X5) and his business partner Petr Aven, Alisher Usmanov (Metalloinvest, MegaFon ), Alexei Mordashov (Severstal , Lenta , a share in the TUI tour operator), Gennady Timchenko (shares in Novatek and Sibur), and Alexander Ponomarenko (co-owner of the Sheremetyevo Airport).

Head of Rosneft Igor Sechin and head of Transneft Nikolai Tokarev have been blacklisted, too.

The sanctions are also imposed on the Sogaz insurance company (indirect participation in VK ).

Mordashov has been the first to comment on the sanctions.

"Please note that I am nowhere near politics and I have spent my entire life creating economic value for companies I worked for both inside and outside Russia. I have absolutely nothing to do with the emergence of these geopolitical tensions. I do not understand why the sanctions have been imposed on me. I have been doing a lot for a long time to develop economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation with European countries. I do not see how the sanctions against me can help settle the conflict in Ukraine," Mordashov's spokesman quoted him as saying.

"Everything necessary should be done to resolve the conflict and stop the bloodshed as soon as possible and to help the affected people go back to a normal life," Mordashov said.