The ex-prosecutor general of Australia will try to lift sanctions against Deripaska in court

Deripaska came under Australian sanctions in March 2022. The businessman appealed this; his interests are represented by the country's ex-prosecutor general. The statement says that Canberra relied on the decisions of other Western countries and rumors on the Internet Oleg Deripaska

Businessman Oleg Deripaska ( Forbes estimates his fortune at $2.5 billion) has challenged the imposition of Australian sanctions against him, The Canberra Times reports. The billionaire appealed to the Federal Court of Australia with a request to review this decision; his interests are represented by the former Attorney General of this country (in 2017-2021) Christian Porter.

Canberra blacklisted Deripaska in March last year; former Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne (who left her position in May 2022) said that the measures are intended to put “pressure on oligarchs close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.” This decision blocked Deripaska from entering the country and “deprived him of the opportunity to profit from his participation in the Queensland Alumina company,” the newspaper writes.

Queensland Alumina is an alumina refinery located in Gladstone, Queensland. 20% of the company belonged to Rusal through its Australian subsidiary Alumina and Bauxite Company, 80% to Rio Tinto Alcan. In March last year, Australia banned supplies of alumina and aluminum ores to Russia. Rio Tinto later decided to sever commercial relations with Moscow and announced that it had gained full control of the Gladstone plant. Rusal appealed to the Australian court demanding the return of its share in the enterprise.

Deripaska said in a statement that there were insufficient grounds for imposing sanctions, and that ex-minister Payne was guided by “irrelevant considerations.” According to the businessman, Canberra was influenced by decisions of other Western countries on sanctions against the entrepreneur (he is under sanctions from the USA , Canada, Great Britain ), the refusal of the American court to lift restrictions and “gossip on the Internet.”

Porter, speaking at the court in Perth, said Payne had failed in her duties and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade "failed to adequately advise her".

The Australian government justified the restrictions on the grounds that Deripaska maintained “close ties with Putin” and “was engaged in activities or performed functions that were economically or strategically important to Russia.” In addition, they said in Canberra, the businessman had previously said that he “does not separate himself from the Russian state,” The Guardian reports.

Read PionerProdukt .by How a company can register with the military and avoid a fine of 500 thousand rubles. The age of hopelessness. Why a career in Russia ends at 30 New fines and advertising expenses: what awaits the e-commerce market in 2024 Which leaders do businesses need in 2024, and which ones will be left out of the game

Deripaska called these allegations “vague”, unsubstantiated and noted that “their origin is unknown.” In his statement, the businessman also denied that he performed any functions of strategic importance for Russia, the newspaper writes. He called the sanctions legally unjustified.

In an October interview with The Financial Times, Deripaska said Russia had withstood Western sanctions due to military action in Ukraine . In early December, he wrote on his Telegram that in the next four years, “sanctions can be considered a completed exercise.”