Estonia Targets 2 Russian Oligarchs With National Sanctions

Estonia said it has placed Russian oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Alisher Usmanov under its national sanctions on Thursday, after the two were delisted from EU sanctions.Fridman and Usmanov were delisted at the insistence of France and Slovakia, ultimately resulting in a compromise that extends the sanctions from the usual six months to three years in exchange for their delisting.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.On Wednesday, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said he signed the relevant decree in New York to impose national sanctions, while calling on other nations to do the same.“Both men support Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and I call on others to impose national sanctions against them too,” Tsahkna wrote in his X update.A day prior, Tsahkna said Tallinn “did not support this decision and abstained from the vote” during the final EU votes on the sanctions.On Tuesday, Latvia, Estonia’s Baltic neighbor, vetoed the extension in protest of the oligarchs’ delisting before later abstaining, hours before the sanctions expired, ultimately allowing the motion to pass through.Ukraine’s sanctions envoy criticized the delisting and said it “must not become a new precedent,” while President Volodymyr Zelensky called it “suicidal and counterproductive” amid increased Russian attacks.EU delisting Fridman, UsmanovThe latest extension has faced heated debate and lengthy delays as France and Slovakia pushed to exclude Usmanov and Fridman. Other Topics of Interest Kremlin Says Invitation to Moscow Still Stands After Zelensky Told He’d Get There ‘On a Rocket’ Zelensky gave a profane response when a Russian reporter asked when he would visit Moscow. The Kremlin says it did not hear a refusal. Usmanov, an Uzbek-born Russian businessman and billionaire, built his fortune through investments in technology, metals, and mining. He has been blacklisted since the beginning of Russia’s war in 2022.Mikhail Fridman is an Israeli-Russian businessman born in Ukraine and a cofounder of Alfa Bank – Russia’s largest non-state bank.Both individuals are linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the military-industrial complex sustaining Moscow’s war efforts.France joined Slovakia in calling for Usmanov’s delisting, citing national security concerns, with media reports suggesting Paris is concerned about two French nationals held by Azerbaijan, which allegedly pressured Paris over the decision.While a senior Baku official denied the claim, one of the French nationals was released after the extension was passed.Meanwhile, Luxembourg is said to have pushed for Fridman’s delisting over the latter’s ongoing $16 billion arbitration claim against the country. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 97% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.