Ekaterina Girnyk21:23, 06/26/24

The decision on sanctions against Pumpyansky will be annulled, and the Council of the European Union will be ordered to pay the expenses incurred by the businessman.

The European Court upheld the claim of Russian billionaire Dmitry Pumpyansky to exclude him from the EU sanctions lists , writes Reuters .

According to the publication, Pumpyansky was first included in the list in March 2022, when he was chairman of the board of directors of the global steel pipe manufacturer TMK and president and member of the board of directors of the Russian investment bank Sinara.

It was alleged that “both companies support and benefit from cooperation with the authorities of the Russian Federation and state-owned enterprises, including Russian railways, Gazprom and Rosneft, which generate significant revenues for Moscow.

However, the court has now said in its decision that the EU Council failed to justify Pumpyansky’s importance in Russia after he left his two key positions.

“(Pumpyansky) claims that since he sold his shares in TMK and the Sinara Group in March 2022, he is now only a private individual and is no longer involved in any business activities in Russia or abroad, resulting in “he cannot be classified as a ‘leading entrepreneur’ according to the said criterion,” the court said.

The decision on sanctions against Pumpyansky will be annulled, and the Council of the European Union will be ordered to pay the expenses incurred by the businessman. This decision also concerns Pumpyansky’s wife, Galina, who was removed from the EU blacklist.

Dmitry Pumpyansky – what is known

Pumpyansky is the owner and chairman of the board of OAO TMK, a manufacturer of steel pipes for the oil and gas industry, which is a supplier to Gazprom. He was subject to sanctions from the UK, EU and US after the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Britain said the billionaire, worth an estimated £1.84 billion, is one of the oligarchs “closest to Putin.”

In September 2023, the EU court refused to lift sanctions against the oligarch , saying that although Pumpiansky was not directly involved in the military offensive in Ukraine, he was involved in sectors of the economy that represent a significant source of income for the Russian government.

(C)UNIAN 2024