Luxembourg threatens to push for Fridman sanctions removal if EU grants Usmanov deal

Luxembourg has issued a warning within EU deliberations that it will push for the removal of sanctions against oligarch Mikhail Fridman if the European Union agrees to lift sanctions against Alisher Usmanov as part of the Azerbaijan prisoner exchange deal being championed by France. The Luxembourg position appears designed to highlight what officials see as the dangerous precedent of selectively removing sanctions on Russian oligarchs for diplomatic convenience, arguing that such moves would open the door to further erosion of the EU sanctions regime. Both Usmanov and Fridman were sanctioned by the EU following Russia's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, as part of measures targeting oligarchs with close ties to the Kremlin. The threat underscores the growing tension within the EU over how to handle the sanctions regime while pursuing diplomatic objectives, with some member states showing willingness to trade sanctions relief for geopolitical gains in specific cases.