Ukraine adviser urges EU to sanction Russian billionaires Potanin and Lisin

Ukraine’s sanctions policy adviser Vladyslav Vlasiuk warned that the EU’s decision to lift sanctions on Mikhail Fridman and Alisher Usmanov created a dangerous precedent, and urged the bloc to sanction two other Russian oligarchs. He singled out Vladimir Potanin, head of Nornickel, and Vladimir Lisin, owner of Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK), saying their inclusion would cut off their companies from European markets. Lisin’s NLMK operates metalworking facilities in Belgium’s Wallonia region and production sites across France, Italy and Denmark, while Potanin’s Nornickel supplies a substantial share of the EU’s nickel and palladium.

A spokesperson for Lisin dismissed the push as an unfair competitive campaign, claiming the firms do not work with Russia’s military-industrial complex. Potanin, whose U.S. assets were frozen in December 2022 and who is already sanctioned by the United Kingdom, has expanded his holdings in Russia during the war, acquiring stakes in Yandex, Tinkoff Bank and Rosbank. The EU’s removal of sanctions on Fridman and Usmanov was backed by France and Luxembourg, drawing criticism from Russian opposition figures.