The EU Court reversed the prolongation of penalties imposed on tycoon Mikhail Gutseriev.
Gutseriev, a billionaire, triumphs in legal battle against sanctions.
The European Court of Justice has decided to reverse the extended sanctions targeting Mikhail Gutseriev. Since 2021, the prominent businessman had been included on the European sanctions roster due to his longstanding backing of Lukashenko, relating to “occurrences in Belarus.”
The entrepreneur engages in commerce both domestically and internationally. His Safmar group encompasses, or formerly encompassed, holding firms such as RussNeft and Russian Coal, the retail chains M.Video and Eldorado, the construction companies A101 and Mospromstroy, the broadcasting channels Bridge TV, along with the radio broadcasters Radio Shanson and Radio Dacha.
Gutseriev is attempting to circumvent the constraints via multiple approaches. In 2022, he engaged with representatives from the FBI and Czech intelligence (GIBS), aspiring to have sanctions revoked in return for insights into Putin’s strategies.
Nevertheless, the entrepreneur has not relinquished his backing for the conflict: as of 2023, he was enlisting mercenaries utilizing his organization, Mospromstroy. Furthermore, Russian Coal, one of his other enterprises, served as a provider to the Defense Ministry, at least during 2017–18.