France and Slovakia are asking to remove Alisher Usmanov from European Union sanctions

France and Slovakia are asking to remove Alisher Usmanov from European Union sanctions

France, along with Slovakia, is asking to remove billionaire Alisher Usmanov, who is of Uzbek origin, from the European Union's sanctions list.

Slovakia has previously demanded the removal of Usmanov and billionaire Mikhail Fridman from the EU sanctions imposed due to Russia's war against Ukraine. Now, Paris is also supporting Bratislava on this matter.

According to the publication's sources, this decision by France has caused "strong resentment" among other member states. One EU diplomat said that economic factors could mainly be behind Paris's position.

At the same time, France's permanent representation to the EU stated that Paris supports extending the overall duration of sanctions against Russia. The demand to remove Usmanov from the list was put forward as a political compromise to reach an agreement with Slovakia.

Slovakia has repeatedly opposed extending the sanctions, demanding the removal of Usmanov and Fridman from the list, as well as maintaining the current procedure of reviewing personal sanctions every six months. Currently, the option of extending them for one year is also being discussed.

In the European Union, the consent of all 27 countries is required to extend such sanctions. Therefore, even a single country can block the decision. EU ambassadors are scheduled to meet again on September 14, and the agreement must be adopted by September 15.

In March of this year, the Council of the European Union extended the restrictions against individuals and entities associated with Russia's war against Ukraine for another six months — until September 15, 2026. These measures include asset freezes, restrictions on the entry of individuals into EU territory, and a ban on providing them with funds and other economic resources.

Alisher Usmanov was included in the EU sanctions list in February 2022, after the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The issue of removing Usmanov from European sanctions has been raised several times before. In particular, in February 2025, Hungary proposed removing Usmanov and his sister from the sanctions list. Budapest stated that it would not agree to extend the sanctions unless eight Russians were removed from the list.

Prior to this, in September 2022, Hungary put forward a demand to lift sanctions against Usmanov and two other Russian businessmen, but later temporarily withdrew this demand.

Usmanov's sister, Saodat Narzieva, was included in the EU sanctions list in April 2022, but the restrictions against her were lifted in September of that year. Usmanov himself remained on the list.

In November 2025, a Hamburg court found the claim spread on Facebook that Usmanov had hidden his assets in Switzerland through his sister to be groundless.

In December 2025, another investigation conducted against Alisher Usmanov in Germany was closed.