Russian Billionaire Abramovich Challenges EU Sanctions against Him

Russian billionaire and owner of Chelsea football club Roman Abramovich gives a thumbs-up before the Group D Euro 2012 soccer match between Ukraine and England at Donbass Arena in Donetsk June 19, 2012. REUTERS/Nigel Roddis/File Photo
Russian billionaire and owner of Chelsea football club Roman Abramovich gives a thumbs-up before the Group D Euro 2012 soccer match between Ukraine and England at Donbass Arena in Donetsk June 19, 2012. REUTERS/Nigel Roddis/File Photo
TT
20

Russian Billionaire Abramovich Challenges EU Sanctions against Him

Russian billionaire and owner of Chelsea football club Roman Abramovich gives a thumbs-up before the Group D Euro 2012 soccer match between Ukraine and England at Donbass Arena in Donetsk June 19, 2012. REUTERS/Nigel Roddis/File Photo
Russian billionaire and owner of Chelsea football club Roman Abramovich gives a thumbs-up before the Group D Euro 2012 soccer match between Ukraine and England at Donbass Arena in Donetsk June 19, 2012. REUTERS/Nigel Roddis/File Photo

Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich on Wednesday will challenge European Union sanctions imposed on him after the Ukraine war, arguing that the restrictions were imposed simply because he is a well-known Russian, a source familiar with the matter said.
After President Vladimir Putin ordered tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24, the EU slapped sanctions on Russian officials and a host of Russian businessmen while freezing hundreds of billions of dollars of Russian assets.
The EU in March 2022 described Abramovich, now 56, as an "oligarch who has close ties to Vladimir Putin" including "privileged access" to the Kremlin chief, connections the EU said had helped him maintain his assets.
Abramovich filed a challenge to the EU sanctions on May 25, 2022, and on Thursday the General Court of the Court of Justice of the European Union will hear the challenge, a source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
His lawyers will argue that the EU sanctions are baseless and were imposed purely because he is a famous Russian businessman, the source said.
"He was not sanctioned because of evidence relating to the criteria: he was sanctioned simply because politically, the most famous Russian businessman had to be even if this is a manifest error," the source said.
Abramovich, who also holds Israeli citizenship, was one of the most powerful businessmen who earned fabulous fortunes after the 1991 break-up of the Soviet Union. Forbes has put his net worth at $9.2 billion.



Pro-Palestinian Activists Due to Appear Court after Damaging Planes at RAF Base

Demonstrators look on during a protest after British lawmakers voted to ban pro-Palestinian campaign group Palestine Action as a terrorist organization, outside Downing Street in London, Britain, July 2, 2025. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett
Demonstrators look on during a protest after British lawmakers voted to ban pro-Palestinian campaign group Palestine Action as a terrorist organization, outside Downing Street in London, Britain, July 2, 2025. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett
TT
20

Pro-Palestinian Activists Due to Appear Court after Damaging Planes at RAF Base

Demonstrators look on during a protest after British lawmakers voted to ban pro-Palestinian campaign group Palestine Action as a terrorist organization, outside Downing Street in London, Britain, July 2, 2025. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett
Demonstrators look on during a protest after British lawmakers voted to ban pro-Palestinian campaign group Palestine Action as a terrorist organization, outside Downing Street in London, Britain, July 2, 2025. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett

Four people are set to appear in a London courtroom on Thursday over charges connected with an incident in which pro-Palestinian protesters damaged two Royal Air Force planes with red paint and crowbars.

The charges come after the group Palestine Action said two of its members entered RAF Brize Norton on June 20 and used electric scooters to approach two Voyager jets used for air-to-air refueling. The protesters used repurposed fire extinguishers to spray paint into the planes’ jet engines and caused further damage with crowbars, according to the group, which released video footage of the incident, The Associated Press said.

The four, all between the ages of 22 and 35, are charged with conspiracy to commit criminal damage and conspiracy to enter a prohibited place for purposes prejudicial to the interests of the UK, counter-terror police said in a statement. The Crown Prosecution Service will argue that that the offenses have a “terrorist connection,” police said.

Palestine Action has claimed responsibility for a series of incidents targeting Israeli defense contractors in the UK and other sites linked to the war in Gaza. Following the incident at RAF Brize Norton, the government introduced legislation to ban Palestine Action as a terrorist organization. The measure means it will be a criminal offense to belong to or support the group, with a maximum of 14 years in prison.

Palestine Action rejects that assertion, saying its protests are designed to end international support for Israel’s war in Gaza.

Planes from Brize Norton, 70 miles (112 kilometers) northwest of London, regularly fly to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, Britain’s main air base for operations in the Middle East.