France seeks to lift EU sanctions on Russian oligarch Usmanov in bid to free citizens held in Azerbaijan - FT
France is seeking to remove Russian-Uzbek billionaire Alisher Usmanov from the EU sanctions list as part of efforts to secure the release of French citizens imprisoned in Azerbaijan, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Paris backed Slovakia’s request to remove Usmanov from the sanctions list during negotiations over the renewal of the EU’s individual sanctions against Russia.
According to the FT, France’s position is linked to negotiations with Azerbaijan over the release of several French citizens held there. Any arrangement would depend on whether other EU member states agree to lift the sanctions on Usmanov.
If completed, the arrangement would mark the first prisoner-release deal directly tied to easing EU sanctions imposed over Russia, the newspaper reported.
France had previously described its request concerning Usmanov only as a “specific national security issue,” saying it was seeking to respond positively to requests from international partners.
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