The US Department of the Treasury has decided to remove Mikhail Zadornov, the former chairman of the board of the Russian bank Otkritie and a former Minister of Finance of Russia, from the sanctions list. This information was made public on the official portal of the department on April 3.
This is reported by Finway
Official Reasons for the Decision Are Not Disclosed
The announcement from the US Treasury does not specify the exact grounds for this action. At the same time, a US government representative quoted by Reuters emphasized that this isolated action does not indicate a change in Washington’s overall sanctions policy towards Russia.
“The inclusion and exclusion of individuals from the sanctions list is a tool of US foreign policy, and removal from the list may be related to a positive change in behavior.”
Circumstances of Removal from the Sanctions List
According to sources from Reuters, Mikhail Zadornov achieved his removal from the sanctions list through legal procedures, although the details of this process remain unknown. US officials did not provide additional information regarding the consideration of Zadornov’s case.
Mikhail Zadornov was placed under US sanctions following the onset of the full-scale aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine in 2022. The United Kingdom also joined the US sanctions. Previously, he served as Minister of Finance of Russia from 1997 to 1999 and was one of the initiators of the decision to default in August 1998. Zadornov was repeatedly elected as a State Duma deputy, representing the Yabloko party.
Zadornov was invited to lead Otkritie Bank during the rehabilitation of the financial institution, which was conducted by the Central Bank of Russia. At the end of 2022, the bank was acquired by the VTB group, after which it ceased to exist as a separate legal entity.