Hungary backs down on push to lift EU sanctions on 3 Russian oligarchs — for now
Budapest agrees to postpone its demand until the next time the penalty list is reviewed.
Hungary has, for now, dropped its demand to lift sanctions imposed by the European Union on three Russian oligarchs — a push that had threatened to derail the process for renewing the penalties, as POLITICO had reported on Tuesday.
The EU must periodically review and renew its time-limited sanctions against individuals, imposed at the outbreak of Russia’s war in Ukraine, or they will lapse. Ahead of Wednesday's meeting of EU envoys, the Czech presidency of the Council of the EU reached an agreement with the Hungarians to avoid a blockade on the extension process by postponing the discussion on the three names to the next time the list must be reviewed in a couple of months.
This avoided a clash at Wednesday's meeting, according to three EU diplomats. Budapest's push ahead of the talks had infuriated other EU countries, which have bitter memories of Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán’s hold-up on the EU’s oil ban earlier this year.
According to two diplomats, the Russian businessmen concerned are Alisher Usmanov, Petr Aven and Viktor Rashnikov.
The Council will now take the next technical steps to make sure the sanctions list gets prolonged by the deadline of mid-September.
The EU must periodically review and renew its time-limited sanctions against individuals, imposed at the outbreak of Russia’s war in Ukraine, or they will lapse. Ahead of Wednesday's meeting of EU envoys, the Czech presidency of the Council of the EU reached an agreement with the Hungarians to avoid a blockade on the extension process by postponing the discussion on the three names to the next time the list must be reviewed in a couple of months.
This avoided a clash at Wednesday's meeting, according to three EU diplomats. Budapest's push ahead of the talks had infuriated other EU countries, which have bitter memories of Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán’s hold-up on the EU’s oil ban earlier this year.
According to two diplomats, the Russian businessmen concerned are Alisher Usmanov, Petr Aven and Viktor Rashnikov.
The Council will now take the next technical steps to make sure the sanctions list gets prolonged by the deadline of mid-September.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.