BRUSSELS — France has a week to reassure fellow EU countries that its push to remove a controversial Russian-Uzbek billionaire from the bloc’s sanctions list won’t start a free-for-all that fractures restrictions on Moscow. Ambassadors failed to agree on Monday on whether to remove mining and metals tycoon Alisher Usmanov from the EU’s blacklist during a closed-door meeting, known as Coreper. Five diplomats and officials involved in the discussions told POLITICO it’s now up to Paris, which blindsided colleagues in backing the delisting of Usmanov, to explain how doing so wouldn’t set a dangerous precedent.
The envoys will reconvene Sept. 22. Russia has given us no reason to allow any delistings,” one said. Paris initially cast its advocacy for Usmanov, who has been sanctioned by the EU, the U.S., the U.K. and Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, as a concession to Slovakia — which had long advocated for his removal from the list.
However, French officials and diplomats have since been given lines by the Élysée, acknowledging that Paris has “a specific national security issue and wish[es] to respond positively to international partners who have approached us regarding Mr. Usmanov.” That could include the release of French nationals jailed by Azerbaijan, a close ally of Uzbekistan, as reported by the FT. Member states lobbying for vested interests in sanctions talks is nothing new, said another diplomat.
Paris, however, insists it has been transparent with other EU countries about its plans. Coreper is not the right place to discuss those in detail,” said a senior French diplomat who was granted anonymity to speak frankly about the sensitive discussions. Usmanov rejects those charges along with his depiction as an oligarch, and has campaigned to be removed from the list.
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