Jozef Hambálek, pictured at a Smer party protest on September 20, 2022. (source: Jozef Jakubčo)
From March 15, the European Union will lift sanctions against Slovak Jozef Hambálek, the European head of the Russian nationalist motorcycle club Night Wolves, the Reuters new agency reports.
The EU accused Hambálek of spreading Russian propaganda and training bikers to join the fighting in Ukraine on the side of Russian invading forces. In January, Prime Minister Robert Fico lobbied Germany to lift the sanctions on Hambálek. He was added to the sanctions list in July 2022. Fico asserted that Hambálek had done nothing to damage Slovakia's national interests.
Hambálek is not the only one
According to Reuters' sources, the EU will also remove two Russian entrepreneurs, Arkady Volozh, co-founder of the internet company Yandex, and Sergey Mndoiants, whos is responsible for relations with the Russian government in the Sistema conglomerate. The EU considers the sanctions against these individuals "legally indefensible," in Volozh's case citing a change in his stance towards the Russian invasion, which he initially did not comment on but called "barbaric" in August last year.
Alisher Usmanov, a billionaire involved in metallurgy and telecommunications, former Formula 1 racer Nikita Mazepin, and the owner of Russian fertilizer manufacturer Acron, Vyacheslav Kantor, will remain on the list. Hungary had lobbied to have them removed.
In the case of Usmanov, Reuters' source stated that the sanctions were not indefensible, partly because the EU Court rejected his appeal in early February. "Strong evidence" allegedly exists against the other two individuals.
The EU froze assets and imposed entry bans on approximately 2,000 individuals and entities believed to be involved in or benefiting from the Russian invasion. The war began almost two years ago, and the sanctions regime against some individuals is set to expire on March 15. On Wednesday, the EU decided to extend sanctions, except for Hambálek, Volozh and Mndoiants.
On Friday, to mark the the second anniversary of the invasion on February 24, the EU plans to introduce a 13th package of sanctions against Russia, targeting nearly 200 individuals and entities.
