The U.S. Sanctions a Russian Oligarch--but Exempts His Companies

[former9thward]

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said sanctions would ‘impose massive costs on Putin’s closest confidants.’ In reality, the impact is far milder.

On March 3, the day the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, a cargo ship arrived in Mobile, Ala., carrying 53,000 tons of pig iron destined for a Mississippi steel plant. It came from a subsidiary of the company that accounts for much of Mr. Usmanov’s wealth, shipping records show. Another subsidiary owns the shipping firm that delivered it. It was all legal.

In imposing economic sanctions after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, U.S. officials created exceptions. Their worry was that oligarchs like Mr. Usmanov had interests so deeply woven into the global economy that curtailing their businesses could trigger broader economic pain and legal blowback, said current and former Treasury officials.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, in announcing penalties against Russian oligarchs including Mr. Usmanov, said the measures would “impose massive costs on Putin’s closest confidants and their family members and freeze their assets.”

At the same time, the Treasury’s exceptions ensured that the damage for these targeted people, who the U.S. says have become some of the world’s richest people partly by supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin, has been milder than the Biden administration’s rhetoric might suggest.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-ukraine-russia-sanctions-oligarch-exemptions-11648655430

[I_UndergroundPanther]

1. we must stop being soft on oligarchs.

The world would be better off without them.