Perhaps Worst Friggin’ Idea Ever: Canada’s Ukrainian-Descent Deputy PM (Who Wants To Be PM) Suggests Russian Oligarchs Purchase Their Way Out Of Sanctions. Price For Private Jet Gstaad Ski Holiday?
Chutzpah… Let’s Make A Deal! No, Don’t Do It.
Perhaps The Worst Friggin’ Idea Ever: Canada’s Ukrainian-Descent Deputy Prime Minister (Who Aspires To Be Prime Minister) Suggesting Russian Oligarchs Purchase Their Way Out Of Sanctions.
It’s The Best Way To Reinforce The Worst Stereotypes. Everything Is For Sale.
Russia-Ukraine-Israel Connectivity Reported By Media.
Don’t Want… “I’m A Citizen Of The State Of Israel. Let Me Pay US$1 Billion. Remove Sanctions. Reset My Life’s Decisions. A New Reputation. A Presidential Award Too- Philanthropist To The Citizens Of Ukraine?”
Will Israel Be Asked To Unleash Lobbying In Brussels, London, and Washington. Seeking Support From Members Of Parliament And United States Congress.
If US$1 Billion Gets Sanctions Removed By United Kingdom, How Much To Remove Sanctions By United States?
For US$100 Million, Can The Yacht Be Returned For The Holidays? The Mediterranean Awaits. Aircraft For Christmas And New Year’s? Family Wants To Visit Gstaad.
Let us appreciate the absurdity of the suggestion by Chrystia Freeland, a former Minister of Foreign Affairs who serves concurrently as Deputy Prime Minister of Canada and Minister of Finance of Canada... and who aspires to be Prime Minister of Canada.
Outside the borders of Ukraine, after the Russian Federation, Canada has the second-largest population of residents of Ukrainian descent.
Ms. Freeland, who speaks fluent Ukrainian and whose mother was born in Ukraine, studied in Ukraine and during her previous employment as a journalist reported from Ukraine. Ms. Freeland studied Russian history and literature while attending Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Ms. Freeland is the author in 2000 of Sale of the Century, about the Russian Federation's journey from communist state to capitalism, and Plutocrats: The Rise of the New Global Super-Rich and the Fall of Everyone Else in 2012.
Governments condemning the 24 February 2022 invasion of Ukraine by the armed forces of the Russian Federation have since that date sought to hold accountable for decisions taken by the government of the Russian Federation individuals subject to Russian Federation jurisdiction (some of whom have citizenship and residency in second and third countries particularly in the State of Israel) deemed to be meet the fluid definition of an “oligarch.”
Oxford Dictionary: ol·i·garch (/ˈäləˌɡärk/) a ruler in an oligarchy. (especially in Russia) a very rich business leader with a great deal of political influence.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary: (ol·i·garch | \ˈä-lə-ˌgärkˈō)- Definition of oligarch: a member or supporter of an oligarchy in Russia and other countries that succeeded the Soviet Union: one of a class of individuals who through private acquisition of state assets amassed great wealth that is stored especially in foreign accounts and properties and who typically maintain close links to the highest government circles.
Forbes Magazine: “Three of the most high-profile sanctioned Russian oligarch billionaires are also Israeli citizens: Alfa Bank cofounders Mikhail Fridman and German Khan, and Roman Abramovich.”
Messrs. Roman Abramovich (US$9 billion reported net worth), German Khan (US$8.8 billion reported net worth), Petr Aven (US$5.3 billion reported net worth), Mikhail Fridman (US$13.3 billion reported net worth), Victor Vekselberg (US$5.5 billion reported net worth), Leonard Blavatnik (US$27.5 billion reported net worth), Alexander Abramov (US$6.6 billion reported net worth), Oleg Deripaska (US$3.3 billion reported net worth), Moshe Kantor (US$4.5 billion reported net worth), Leonid Mikhelson (US$26.6 billion reported worth), Mikhail Prokhorov (US$11.5 billion reported net worth), and God Nisanov (U$4.9 billion reported net worth) are individuals described as oligarchs, are individuals of Russian descent, are individuals subject to Russian Federation jurisdiction, and are individuals with confirmed and/or reported by media State of Israel citizenship.
According to the New York, New York-based Jewish Telegraphic Agency there are approximately eighteen (18) oligarchs who are citizens of the State of Israel, and their collective net worth exceeds US$120 billion.
If Deputy Prime Minister Freeland’s suggestion were to be implemented, the message would solely serve to reinforce the perception that 1) money can buy freedom 2) money can buy restitution 3) money can buy reputation 4) money can buy exemptions and 5) individuals of Jewish descent again use money to solve their problems.
Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine, is of Jewish descent as are many members of his government and members of parliament and citizens of the country. Deputy Prime Minister Freeland’s suggestion, if implemented, would further scar not only Ukraine, but the State of Israel too. And how would Deputy Prime Minister Freeland craft her suggestion?
For a payment of US$500 billion there would be a list of exemptions from which an oligarch could select? For a payment of US$1 billion there would be another list of exemptions from which an oligarch could select?
Would a payment of US$100 million ensure an owner again to enjoy his yacht(s), aircraft(s), ski chalet(s)?
Might the US$500 million level include unlimited travel within the twenty-seven-country member European Union (EU) or the ability to travel on a general aviation aircraft or yacht?
Might the US$1 billion level include removal of EU-imposed sanctions?
Might relinquishing 50% of an oligarch’s net worth include removal from sanctions imposed by the United States Government? What would 33.33% get?
Deputy Prime Minister Freeland’s intentions are laudable in her effort to craft mechanisms that, when implemented, would hold to account, penalize individuals deemed to have enabled to a degree the government of the Russian Federation to behave as it has since 2008 (invasion of Georgia), since 2014 (invasion of Ukraine), and since 2022 (further and new invasion of Ukraine).
However, Deputy Prime Minister Freeland’s suggestion as outlined only hoists “Let’s Make A Deal” signage not only for Ukraine, but for other countries.
Accountability by oligarchs must not be determined by using keys on a cash register. Accountability by oligarchs must wait until the government of Ukraine, on behalf of its citizens, determines the acceptable integrity of the nation- that means the borders that it wants, not the borders that it has today.
Business Insider
New York, New York
7 September 2022
Russian oligarchs are offering to give Ukraine some of their money in exchange for exemptions from Western sanctions, report says By Sinéad Baker
Western countries sanctioned Russian oligarchs over Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Some tried to get out of the sanctions by offering money to Ukraine, the Financial Times reported. Ukraine appears to be against the idea, saying the point of sanctions is to "stop the war."
Some Russian businessman sanctioned by the West have offered Ukraine money exchange for the sanctions being lifted, the Financial Times reported. The billionaire oligarch Mikhail Fridman and several other Russian businessmen have reached out to Ukraine to make the offer, the FT reported, citing people involved in the process. It is not clear when the offers were made. Many wealthy Russians have been sanctioned by the West over Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Now many of them are looking for ways to get out of the sanctions that limit what money they have, what they can spend, and where they can go. Some are also being watched by Russia and fear punishment — like a poisoning — if they speak out against the war, the FT reported.
But Ukraine has not been open to their proposals, the report said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "balked" at the idea of lifting sanctions on some Russian businesspeople, sources told the FT. Rostislav Shurma, the deputy head of Zelenskyy's office, told the FT: "Ukraine is not using sanctions as a bargaining tool. This is a matter of principle. The main goal of sanctions is to stop the war, not find some conditions to agree to lift them." In Fridman's case, Zelenskyy said he will only accept the offer if Fridman — who was born in Ukraine — denounces Putin, destroys his Russian passport, and is more critical of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a source close to Zelenskyy told the FT. Fridman denied ever talking about getting Ukrainian citizenship with the Kyiv government, the FT reported.
It is also not clear if Ukraine has completely ruled out any of the Russians' offers. Fridman previously said that Russian oligarchs were powerless to convince Putin to stop or change the war, though some have publicly called for it to end. One sanctioned Russian businessman told the FT that the sanctioned Russians would not be able to overthrow Putin as none of them were close enough to him. In May, Western officials considered the idea of lifting sanctions against Russians if they donated money to Ukraine, the Associated Press reported at the time.
Chrystia Freeland, Canada's deputy prime minister and finance minister, had proposed the idea at a G7 financial summit, the AP reported. It is not clear if the idea was totally rejected, but there have been no public cases of anyone having their sanctions dropped by contributing to Ukraine. Insider has contacted Freeland's office for comment.
Associated Press
New York, New York
26 May 2022
West mulls having Russian oligarchs buy way out of sanctions By Rob Gillies and Frank Jordans
BERLIN (AP) — Western allies are considering whether to allow Russian oligarchs to buy their way out of sanctions and using the money to rebuild Ukraine, according to government officials familiar with the matter. Canadian Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland proposed the idea at a G-7 finance ministers’ meeting in Germany last week.
Freeland raised the issue after oligarchs spoke to her about it, one official said. The Canadian minister knows some Russian oligarchs from her time as a journalist in Moscow. The official said the Ukrainians were aware of the discussions. The official said it’s also in the West’s interests to have prominent oligarchs dissociate themselves from Russian President Vladimir Putin while at the same time providing funding for Ukraine. “We would not be talking about this if there wasn’t some comfort on the part of the Ukrainians,” the official said. “We need to know that it works for them, too.” The officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak publicly about internal G-7 discussions. The proposal was raised in the context of providing additional money to Ukraine and how the frozen funds and assets of oligarchs could be a source of funds. At this point, it is just an idea, the official said, but Western allies have expressed interest. European Union officials have talked about the need to look at different and new avenues of confiscating assets and proving money to Ukraine.
The proposal could help remove a legal hurdle for authorities in countries such as Germany, where the bar for confiscating frozen assets is very high. By voluntarily giving up a share of their fortune abroad, oligarchs would save Western governments the potential embarrassment of being rebuffed by their own courts. Western countries have imposed a raft of sanctions on oligarchs in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Many of their multibillion-dollar fortunes are intertwined with the West, from investments in Silicon Valley startups to British Premier League soccer teams. Former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, who was sanctioned over his links to Putin, has said that net proceeds from the sale of the soccer team would be donated to victims of the war in Ukraine. A deal to sell the soccer club has dragged out as the British government makes sure that Abramovich does not profit from the enforced sale. The British government this week approved the sale of Chelsea to a consortium fronted by a part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Chelsea has been operating under a government license that expires on May 31 since Abramovich’s assets were frozen in March. The EU has imposed asset freezes and travel bans on more than 1,000 people, including over 30 oligarchs, in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24. Almost 10 billion euros ($10.7 billion) of assets have so far been frozen by EU countries, according to the European Commission. It has established a “Freeze and Seize” task force to coordinate the enforcement of what are unprecedented EU penalties against Russia.
A 2017 study of Russian oligarchs published by the U.S.-based National Economic Bureau estimated that as much as $800 billion is held by wealthy Russians in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Cyprus and other offshore banking centers. That vast fortune, held by a few hundred ultra-rich individuals, is roughly equal to the wealth of the rest of Russia’s 144 million people. Some oligarchs have also obtained dual citizenship in Britain and other Western countries. The family fortunes of many in Russia’s billionaires date back to the 1990s, the turbulent decade after the fall of the Soviet Union. Under the notoriously corrupt presidency of Boris Yeltsin, state-controlled assets such as as oil refineries, steel mills, aluminum smelters and tractor factories were gobbled up by the politically influential, often purchased with the aid of government-backed loans. Freeland, Canada’s finance minister, is of Ukrainian heritage and wrote a book about it.
Hitting oligarchs financially impacts Putin as well, and not just because it may diminish the support of Russia’s financially privileged for Putin, said Alex Finley, a former CIA officer who tracks the impact of sanctions on Russian oligarchs. Putin is too cagey to keep his considerable wealth in bank accounts or even family bank accounts, Russia experts say. “A lot of these guys are his wallet,” Finley said of the Russian oligarchs. “They help with laundering his money, laundering their own money, and yachts and other assets are places to hold that money.”
Radio Free Europe
Washington DC
6 September 2022
Sources Say Hungary Is Threatening To Block Some EU Sanctions On Russia If Three Oligarchs Are Not Spared By Rikard Jozwiak
Hungary is threatening to block the renewal of some parts of the European Union's sanctions regime against Russia if three oligarchs aren't removed from a list that takes restrictive measures against more than 1,000 people in the wake of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in late February. According to several diplomatic sources with knowledge of the matter who aren't authorized to speak on the record, the three Budapest wants to see de-listed from the visa ban and asset freeze list are Alisher Usmanov, Pyotr Aven, and Viktor Rashnikov. The move comes as the European Union looks to renew for another six months the list of people under sanctions by another six months. EU ambassadors are set to discuss the matter on September 7, ahead of the September 15 renewal deadline. The list, which can only be rolled over by unanimous vote, currently consists of 1,217 individuals and 108 entities. It has been expanded throughout the year as Brussels ratchets up its restrictive measures on Moscow over its actions in Ukraine. Both Usmanov and Aven were added to the list in late February.
The EU's official journal calls Usmanov a "pro-Kremlin oligarch with particularly close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin." He has been referred to as one of "Putin's favorite oligarchs" and is seen as a fixer for the president's business matters. The sanctions have already led to the seizure of a $600 million yacht -- the largest in the world -- linked to Usmanov, who has unsuccessfully challenged the measures in the European Court of Justice. The EU says Aven "is one of approximately 50 wealthy Russian businessmen who regularly meet with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin. He does not operate independently of the president's demands." Rashnikov, meanwhile, was added to the list in March, with Brussels describing him as "a leading Russian oligarch who is owner and chairman of the board of directors of the Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works (MMK) company. MMK is one of Russia's largest taxpayers." On top of the removal of the trio, Budapest is also asking for an exemption for humanitarian organizations to have business with some Russian banks that are currently under sanctions. There is speculation in Brussels that Hungary is using the sanctions renewal as a leverage to get Brussels to approve EU funds that have so far been withheld over fears of rule-of-law infringements in the country. RFE/RL has contacted officials in Budapest but so far none have commented on the matter.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his government have clashed several times with the EU in recent years over corruption, migration, LGBT rights, and democratic standards. The European Commission has been withholding its approval for Hungary to draw on money meant to help lift economies from the COVID-19 pandemic, accusing Orban's government of undermining the rule of law. Orban has been critical of the EU's stance toward Moscow during the conflict, saying the sanctions have hurt the bloc without weakening Russia or helping Ukraine. Budapest also broke with Brussels on the issue of paying for Russian gas with rubles and has not allowed Western arms shipments through Hungarian territory to Ukraine. The government said in a decree published late on September 5 that it would create an anti-corruption authority and a working group involving nongovernment organizations to oversee the spending of European Union funds, a move aimed at unlocking money being withheld by the bloc.
Links To Related Analyses