A new round of US sanctions targeting the Russian elite includes a woman named as Vladimir Putin’s longtime romantic partner in news reports.
The Treasury Department said on Tuesday that the government had frozen the visas of Olympic gymnast and former State Duma member Alina Kabaeva in her youth and imposed other property restrictions. The department said she also heads a Russian national media company that promotes Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Kremlin critics and jailed Russian rights campaigner Alexei Navalny are calling for sanctions against Kabaeva, saying his news outlet took the lead in painting Western commentary on the invasion as a propaganda campaign.
The UK approved Kabaeva in May and the EU imposed travel and property restrictions on it in June.
Named in the Treasury’s latest sanctions package is Andrey Grigoryevich Gurev, an oligarch who owns the Wittenhurst Estate, a 25-bedroom mansion that is the second largest property in London after Buckingham Palace.
His $120 million yacht, the Alfa Nero, was also identified as a blocked asset. In addition, his son Andrey Andreevich Gurev and his son’s Russian investment firm Dzhi AI Invest OOO were also approved.
“What we’ve seen is that the US government has recognized that a lot of elites are using family to evade sanctions,” says Christian Contardo, a former Treasury attorney now at Lowenstein Sandler LLP.
“Some oligarchs will transfer ownership to their wives and children,” he said.
In April, the US imposed sanctions on Putin’s adult daughters Katerina Vladimirovna Tikhonova and Maria Vladimirovna Vorontsova.
Russian steel maker Publicno Actsionerno Obschesto Magnitogorsky Metallurgichesky Kombinat, also known as MMK, the chairman of its board of directors, Viktor Filippovich Rashnikov, and its subsidiaries were also named for financial penalties.
Additionally, the State Department reported today that the visas of 893 Russian Federation officials, including members of the Federation Council and military, will be blocked.
“As innocent people suffer from Russia’s illegal invasion, Putin’s allies have enriched themselves and funded affluent lifestyles,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement.
“Along with our allies, the United States will also continue to siphon off revenue and equipment underpinning Russia’s unprovoked war in Ukraine.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken “reiterated US support for the brave people of Ukraine and will continue to promote accountability for President Putin and his comrades whose actions have caused so much suffering and destruction in Ukraine.”
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