Russia Why is Putin not put on the sanctions list? The boycott of the “Kremlin host” is not to Finland’s advantage, says former Moscow ambassador

Russian president Vladimir Putin these prospects are not on the list of sanctions put forward by the West to punish Russia for its aggression against Ukraine.

The United States is announced sanctionswhich target Russian financial institutions and Putin’s insiders. EU and British sanctions list there are banks, oligarchs and members of the Russian Duma, among others, who voted in favor of recognizing the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of eastern Ukraine.

Vice-President of the European Commission Věra Jourován thought it was a mistake to exclude Putin from sanctions. He said the president should be first on the list.

“The question is always whether this is the professional art or weakness of diplomacy. In this case, I would see that it is the latter, ”Jourová told the Czech daily Hospodárske noviny.

It seems that sanctions against Putin are not just being imposed. What makes it so complicated?

Finland former ambassador to Moscow René Nyberg said Tuesday In Yle’s A-studiothat the head of state “cannot be sanctioned”. Nyberg explains to HS that he meant that the head of state “should not” be sanctioned.

He said it would be unwise in the current situation.

“You can sanction them and the heads of small countries will be sanctioned left and right. But the conversation should not be disconnected. ”

Nyberg therefore agrees with the Foreign Minister Pekka Haaviston (green) takes the view that the leaders of key states will not be put on the sanctions list in order to continue diplomatic discussions.

“We shouldn’t be left out. The situation is serious and dangerous, but you must always remember to be able to talk at some point. Of course, if a full-blown war breaks out in Europe, the situation will be different. But we are not in a full war now, ”Nyberg says.

“The idea that we would boycott the Kremlin’s host is not in Finland’s national interests, realistic or wise.”

Finland decides on sanctions against Russia as part of the European Union.

Directly Sanctions against Putin are not exclusive anyway. First you should know where his assets are – and the president has skilfully hidden his assets. The newspaper has written about it, among other things The Washington Post.

An example of a sanctioned head of state is the President of Venezuela Nicolás Madurowhich the U.S. government added to its sanctions list in 2017. However, the president’s personal wealth does not appear to have been found.

Financial magazine Forbes estimatesthat Putin’s supposed assets are “probably one of the most difficult to define” riddles. According to the Kremlin, Putin’s income is about 115,000 euros a year, which sounds quite reasonable.

Putin’s most valuable assets are probably its holdings in Russian giants, real estate, aircraft and yachts, but they are usually out of reach of the West in Russia. These things are not directly owned by Putin either.

Read more: Putin’s alleged billion-palace has 17,691 square feet, a “water disco” and an underground ice rink – but that’s just the tip of the iceberg of the funds attached to the president

Last year, a Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalnyi released a revelation video of the “Putin Palace” in the Black Sea, which is believed to be the de facto owner of the president.

A Russian billionaire has registered as the owner of the palace Arkadi Rotenberg, which is on the UK sanctions list. His brother is also on the list Boris Rotenberg, who has Finnish citizenship. They are both Putin’s longtime friends.

In the beginning of February reported on a luxury yacht under renovation by Putin that sailed from a shipyard in Hamburg to Kaliningrad in the middle of winter. There was speculation in the media that the 87 million euro ship left Germany for fear of new sanctions.

Putin’s luxury yacht Graceful sailed in the Kiel Canal in German waters on February 7th. Picture: Steffen Mayer / Reuters