Berlin, 24.09.2026: As it became known this week, The EU has removed Russian oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Alischer Usmanow from its sanctions list.. In fact, Brussels accuses them of generating significant revenues for the Kremlin with their companies.
Fridman had Luxembourg concerning the freezing of its assets before a private arbitral tribunal (Investor-state dispute settlement, ISDS) sued for compensation in the amount of around 16 billion euros. This is almost half of Luxembourg's national budget. Luxembourg has now removed Fridman from the sanctions list. The Luxembourg press reports, Fridman's complaint was the reason for the country's position.
Self EU diplomats speak now of ‘blackmail’. Fridman’s – now successful – lawsuit is not an isolated case: Meanwhile, already over 40 actions Russian oligarchs and sanctioned companies before non-transparent arbitral tribunals.1
PowerShift calls for this parallel justice to be completely abolished
Fabian Flues of PowerShift: “Such lawsuits or threats of action before unilateral arbitral tribunals have been limiting democratic room for manoeuvre for decades: After climate, energy and environmental policies, this now includes sanctions against super-rich oligarchs who support Putin’s regime.”
PowerShift calls on Germany and the EU to terminate all agreements that make such lawsuits possible. “In the face of current wars and crises, we must strengthen democratic scope for action and fundamentally abolish parallel justice for corporations and oligarchs”, adds Fabian Flues.
Infringement of EU law: PowerShift files infringement complaint against Germany
Most lawsuits are based on bilateral investment agreements between EU countries and Russia, which include parallel justice ISDS. Although the agreements violate EU law, according to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), EU countries such as Germany, France, Austria and Sweden continue to adhere to them. Therefore, six2 European organisations – including PowerShift – at the European Commission as early as December 2025 Infringement complaints against Germany and invaded these states.
Background: How Russian oligarchs sue against sanctions (Factsheet, March 2026) link
(1) At the time of publication, 28 lawsuits were known. Meanwhile, the number has grown to 40.
For example, the wife of fertilizer and coal billionaire Andrei Melnichenko is taking action against EU sanctions after her husband's businesses were transferred to her.
After the implementation of US sanctions, Bulgaria faces a lawsuit by the Russian oil company Lukoil after it had to sell a refinery.
(2) The six organisations are: Institut Veblen (France), Powershift (Germany), Attac Austria and Friends of the Earth Sweden, supported by Friends of the Earth Europe and the European Trade Justice Coalition.
The complaint is based on the settled case law of the European Court of Justice (ECJ). As early as 2009, the Council found that such agreements were incompatible with European sanctions policy. He condemned, among other things, Austria and Sweden, because they have not eliminated this incompatibility. However, to date, these states have not brought their agreements into line with EU law.
The complaint is currently under examination and the procedure is expected to continue until the end of 2026. Should the European Commission request the Member States concerned to:
Terminating or renegotiating bilateral investment treaties would have far-reaching consequences for all investment treaties of other EU Member States, as they contain essentially similar arrangements.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact:
Fabian Flues, Trade and Investment Policy Officer, fabian.flues@power-shift.de
Lisa Stüve, Press Officer, lisa.stueve@power-shift.de, +49 1577 7764 847
PowerShift is a German non-governmental organisation based in Berlin. We work on trade and investment policy, climate and resource justice, energy policy, raw materials policy and mobility. Our activities include the preparation of analyses and background papers, education and information work, public relations and participation in civil society campaigns.
