September 25, 2026

No Reward for the Kremlin:

Keep EU Sanctions on Those Who Enable Russia’s War

We, members of the United for Ukraine inter-parliamentary network,

Chairs of the Foreign Affairs, European Affairs and EU Integration Committees

of national parliaments, express our grave concern regarding the removal of

Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman from the list of persons subject to EU

restrictive measures adopted in response to Russia's aggression against Ukraine.

We recall that these individuals were designated under the EU restrictive-

measures regime as key financial and material pillars of the Russian regime. For

decades, they have directly benefited from the Kremlin system, contributed to the

destabilisation of Ukraine, and supported the economic base underpinning

Russia's aggression against Ukraine.

The Council sets out the grounds for their designation in the Statement of

Reasons first adopted in Council Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/336 of 28

February 2022. Mr Fridman was designated as a leading Russian financier with

longstanding ties to the Kremlin who engaged in the Kremlin's efforts to lift

sanctions imposed on Russia. Mr Usmanov was designated as he owns and

controls assets in key sectors of the Russian economy, including Metalloinvest

and MegaFon, which provide substantial revenue to the Russian state. On these

grounds, the Council determined that both individuals had supported, materially

or financially, and benefited from the Russian decision-makers responsible for

the annexation of Crimea and subsequent full scale aggression against Ukraine.

The delisting raises serious concerns about the consistency, credibility and

effectiveness of the EU's restrictive-measures policy. Any decision to remove a

designated person from the list must rest on a rigorous, individualised assessment

of three things, namely, the applicable listing criteria, the evidence underlying the

designation, and any subsequent developments that may constitute legally

relevant grounds for delisting. We are not aware of any such developments in

these two cases. Neither individual has distanced himself from the Kremlin or

condemned Russia's war against Ukraine.

We therefore call upon the Governments of the EU Member States and the

relevant EU institutions to ensure that decisions on the designation or delisting of

Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman are taken strictly on the basis of the

applicable legal framework, the available evidence and the established review

procedures. Such decisions must not be made as part of any political, diplomatic

or bilateral exchange unrelated to the substantive legal criteria for designation.

Sanctions relief that is traded for concessions unrelated to Russia's conduct

undermines the very logic of the regime.

Such a delisting would also set a dangerous precedent. It would signal to

the thousands of other persons on the list, and to the third countries acting on their

behalf, that designations can be undone not through any change in conduct, but

through sustained lobbying or diplomatic pressure. This would invite further

delisting demands, expose individual Member States to coercion, and erode the

deterrent effect of the EU's restrictive measures as a whole.

We commend the Republic of Latvia for its principled stance throughout

these negotiations and for its enacted decision to impose national restrictive

measures on Mr Usmanov and Mr Fridman. We urge all Member States that share

our concerns to follow Latvia's example without delay.

We further urge the Member States to maintain a coordinated and effective

sanctions policy towards all persons whose conduct continues to fall within the

applicable criteria. Any weakening of the regime must be assessed in light of its

implications for the credibility of the Union's response to Russia's aggression and

for the enforcement of existing measures.

The EU's restrictive-measures policy must remain legally robust, evidence-

based, consistent and effectively enforceable for as long as the circumstances

giving rise to those measures persist.

Respectfully,

Žygimantas Pavilionis

Member of The Seimas of the

Lithuanian Republic, Deputy Chair

of Foreign Affairs Committee,

Head of United for Ukraine inter-

parliamentary network

Ruslanas Baranovas

Member of The Seimas of the

Lithuanian Republic, Member of

Foreign Affairs Committee,

Member of United for Ukraine

inter-parliamentary network

Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze

Member of the Verkhovna Rada of

Ukraine, Chair of the Committee

on Ukraine's Integration into the

EU, Member of United for Ukraine

inter-parliamentary network

Oleksandr Merezhko

Member of the Verkhovna Rada of

Ukraine, Chair of the

parliamentary Committee on

Foreign Policy and Inter-

Parliamentary Cooperation,

Member of United for Ukraine

inter-parliamentary network

Agnieszka Pomaska

Member of Sejm of the Republic of

Poland, Chair of the European

Union Affairs Committee at Sejm,

Member of United for Ukraine

inter-parliamentary network

Rihards Kols

Member of the European

Parliament, Member of United for

Ukraine inter-parliamentary

network

Marko Mihkelson

Member of the Riigikogu,

Chairman of the Foreign Affairs

Committee, Member of United for

Ukraine inter-parliamentary

network

Aleksi Jäntti

Member of The Parliament of

Finland, Chair of the

Finland–Ukraine Parliamentary

Friendship Group, Member of

United for Ukraine inter-

parliamentary network

Laurynas Kasčiūnas

Chairman of Homeland Union -

Lithuanian Christian Democrats,

former Defence Minister of

Lithuania

Sara Nanni

Member of Defence Committee,

Bundestag

Dainius Žalimas

Member of the European

Parliament

Eerik-Niiles Kross

Member of The Riigikogu,

Chairman of the Parliamentary

Committee Investigating Russian

Influence Operations, Chairman of

the PACE Legal Committee,

Member of United for Ukraine

inter-parliamentary network

Beata Jurik

Vice-Chair of the EU Affairs

Committee, National Council of

the Slovak Republic

Fatmir Mediu

Member of Defence Committee,

former Defence Minister of

Albania

Vadym Halaichuk

Deputy Chair of EU integration

Committee, Ukraine

Marie Kršková

Member of the Chamber of

Deputies of the Parliament of the

Czech Republic, Vice-chair of the

Committee on European Affairs

Lia Quartapelle

Deputy Chair of Foreign Affairs

Committee, Italy

Lars-Christian Brask

Deputy Speaker, Danish

Parliament

Henrike Brandstötter

Member of Austrian Parliament,

Chair of the Austrian-Ukraine

Parliamentary Friendship Group,

Member of United for Ukraine

inter-parliamentary network

Marcus Knuth

Chairman of the Foreign Affairs

and Defense Committee, Danish

Parliament

Anton Hofreiter

Member of German Bundestag,

Chair of the European Affairs

Committee

Hristo Gadzhev

Deputy Chair of EU affairs

committee, Bulgarian Parliament

Hanah Lahe

Member of Parliament, the

Republic of Estonia

Pavel Fischer

Senator, Chair of the Committee

on Foreign Relations, Security and

Defense, Czech Republic

Marek Ženíšek

Member of the Chamber of

Deputies of the Parliament of the

Czech Republic, Vice-Chairman of

the Foreign Affairs Committee

Ann-Sophie Alm

Member of Parliament of the

Kingdom of Sweden, Member of

the Foreign Affairs Committee,

Member of the Swedish Defense

Commission, Member of Nordic

Council, Member of United for

Ukraine inter-parliamentary

network

Juris Vilums

Chairman of the United List

parliamentary group in Saeima, the

Republic of Latvia

Gustaf Göthberg

Member of the Swedish Parliament

and General Rapporteur for a

democratic Belarus in the

Parliamentary Assembly of the

Council of Europe

Evika Siliņa

Chair of the European Affairs

Committee, Saeima of the

Republic of Latvia

Pavel Žáček

Deputy Head of the Delegation to

the NATO Parliamentary

Assembly, Member of the Security

and Defence Committee, Czech

Republic

Ināra Mūrniece

Chair of the Foreign Affairs

Committee, Parliament of Latvia

Axel Weydts

Member of Parliament, Chair of

the Committee on Military

Operations, Belgian Federal

Parliament

Raimonds Bergmanis

Member of Parliament, Chair of

the Defense, Internal Affairs and

Corruption Prevention Committee,

Latvia

Oras Tynkkynen

Member of The Parliament of

Finland, Co-Chair of the

Finland–Ukraine Parliamentary

Friendship Group

Heikki Autto

Member of the Parliament of

Finland, Chair of the Defence

Committee

Thomas Röwekamp

Chairman of Defence Committee,

German Bundestag

Johannes Volkmann

Member of Foreign Affairs

Committee, German Bundestag

Lucia Plavakova

Chair of the Human Rights

Committee in the Slovak National

Council, Vice Chair of the ALDE

party and Vice Chair of the ALDE

group in PACE

Peeter Tali

Chair of the EU Affairs Committee

of the Riigikogu, Chair of the

National Defence Committee of

the Riigikogu

Frederic Petit

Member of the French National

Assembly, Deputy Chair of

European Affairs Committee,

France

Petras Auštrevičius

Member of the European

Parliament

Riho Terras

Member of the European

Parliament

Michael Gahler

Member of the European

Parliament, the European

Parliament's Standing Rapporteur

on Ukraine

Pekka Tovery

Member of the European

Parliament, Chair of Parliamentary

Association Committee in the

European Parliament

Helmut Brandstätter

Member of the European

Parliament, Co-chair of

Parliamentary Association

Committee in the European

Parliament

Villy Søvndal

Member of the European

Parliament, Co-chair of

Parliamentary Association

Committee in the European

Parliament