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Latvian PM opposes deal to lift sanctions on Russia-linked billionaires Usmanov and Fridman

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The Straits Times. (2026, September 22). Latvian PM opposes deal to lift sanctions on Russia-linked billionaires Usmanov and Fridman. The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/world/latvian-pm-opposes-deal-to-lift-sanctions-on-russia-linked-billionaires-usmanov-and-fridman

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The Straits Times · collected 2026-09-22 · by The Straits Times

Quick Summary

Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs opposes a proposed European Union deal that would lift sanctions on Russian-linked billionaires Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman while extending them for 3,000 other individuals and entities for three years. The current sanctions, which include asset freezes and travel bans due to Russia's war in Ukraine, are set to expire soon unless the EU member countries unanimously decide to renew them. Kulbergs argues that Latvia cannot accept striking Usmanov and Fridman from the sanctions list as a condition for extending other sanctions.
Written by AI on 2026-09-22, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On September 22, Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs opposed a deal that would lift EU sanctions on Russian billionaires Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman, arguing it set an unacceptable precedent. The sanctions, imposed due to Russia's war in Ukraine, were originally scheduled to expire at midnight but could be renewed for three years if all 27 EU member countries agreed unanimously. France had previously pushed to remove Usmanov from the list citing national security concerns, and Luxembourg followed suit with Fridman. Despite initial resistance, Latvia eventually abstained from voting after a compromise was reached, allowing sanctions on nearly 3,000 other individuals and entities to be renewed for three years while lifting those on Usmanov and Fridman. This decision prompted outrage in Ukraine, whose foreign minister warned it sent the wrong message to Russia by dividing European unity.

Written for “Russia Sanctions Lifted” on 2026-11-02, grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Russia Sanctions Lifted
Politics · 3 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 18% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
The Straits Times
Hedges 1 of 7 claims Outlet record 66/100
BBC News
Hedges 2 of 22 claims Outlet record 68/100
Evening Standard
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 2 of 17 claims Outlet record 64/100
“The articles describe different actions related to sanctions against Russia: one about new US sanctions potentially impacting Russia’s war effort in Ukraine, and another about Latvia opposing a deal to lift EU sanctions on specific Russian billionaires.”
National Post
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 1 of 16 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles describe different actions regarding sanctions on Russia: one about Trump signing a bill for new U.S. sanctions, and another about Latvia opposing an EU proposal to lift sanctions on two Russian billionaires.”
Fox News
⚖️ Leans right further right than this Hedges 1 of 25 claims Outlet record 69/100
“The articles discuss different topics: one about Latvia opposing sanctions relief for Russian billionaires and another about Latvian concerns regarding Russia-Iran military cooperation.”
The Guardian
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 4 of 38 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A focuses on Latvia's opposition to lifting sanctions on two Russia-linked billionaires, while Article B covers broader EU negotiations and diplomatic meetings related to Ukraine, Greenland, and other global leaders' talks at the UN general assembly.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
17
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
18%
3 of 17 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
66/100
The Straits Times's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
3
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-22 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Straits Times · 4184 article(s) · 5 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 5 correction(s)

Who wrote this

The Straits Times
2721 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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Also by The Straits Times
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 2721 articles by The Straits Times →

Topics

FRANCE Latvia Latvian Luxembourg Russia

Subjects

Fridman PERSON · 5× Usmanov PERSON · 5× Latvia GPE · 4× Russia GPE · 4× FRANCE GPE · 3× Luxembourg GPE · 3× BRUSSELS GPE · 2× Latvian NORP · 2× Russian NORP · 2× Ukraine GPE · 2×

Narrative

All the sanctions - composed of asset freezes and travel bans, imposed due to Russia's war in Ukraine - are due to expire at midnight on Tuesday, unless the European Union's 27 member countries take a unanimous decision to renew them.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-22
🔮 Latvian PM opposes deal to lift sanctions on Russia-linked billionaires Usmanov and Fridman BRUSSELS, Sept 22 - Latvia said it could not accept a proposed deal that would lift EU sanctions on Russia-linked billionaires Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman in return for keeping thousands of other individuals and businesses under sanctions.

Claims (17 extracted, 3 hedged)

Latvian PM opposes deal to lift sanctions on Russia-linked billionaires Usmanov and Fridman BRUSSELS, Sept 22 - Latvia said it could not accept a proposed deal that would lift EU sanctions on Russia-linked billionaires Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman in return for keeping thousands of other individuals and businesses under sanctions. uncertain
that → oppose → sanctions
Under the proposal, sanctions on Usmanov and Fridman would be lifted but those on some 3,000 other Russia-linked individuals and entities would be renewed for three years. asserted
those → lift → years
All the sanctions - composed of asset freezes and travel bans, imposed due to Russia's war in Ukraine - are due to expire at midnight on Tuesday, unless the European Union's 27 member countries take a unanimous decision to renew them. asserted
countries → compose → them
"Extending sanctions for 36 months would be the right step. asserted
Extending → extend → months
However, the price for it must not be simply striking both individuals from the sanctions list. asserted
price → strike → list
Latvia cannot accept such an offer," Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs posted on X late on Monday night. asserted
Kulbergs → accept → night
FRANCE SPARKED ANGER WITH MOVE TO LIFT USMANOV SANCTIONS asserted
FRANCE → spark → SANCTIONS
To the surprise and anger of many of its EU partners and Ukraine, France this month joined Slovakia in pushing for sanctions to be lifted on Russian-Uzbek businessman Usmanov. asserted
sanctions → join → Usmanov
Luxembourg then demanded the same treatment for Fridman, a Russian, according to diplomats. uncertain
Luxembourg → demand → diplomats
France made its move after coming under what it said was pressure from Azerbaijan, as the country has detained at least two French nationals, three European diplomats told Reuters last week. asserted
diplomats → make → Reuters
A senior Azerbaijani diplomat on Friday rejected those assertions. asserted
diplomat → reject → assertions
Both men have disputed the cases against them and taken legal action to try to have the sanctions removed. asserted
sanctions → dispute → action
Fridman is claiming $16 billion from Luxembourg in a case that has gone to arbitration. asserted
that → claim → arbitration
EU diplomats said Luxembourg argued that its case to maintain EU sanctions on Fridman could be weakened if sanctions were lifted on Usmanov. uncertain
sanctions → say → Usmanov
Kulbergs said he would convene an emergency cabinet meeting on Tuesday to discuss the issue. asserted
he → say → issue
He said Latvia would work with Brussels and Paris "to find a solution suitable for Latvia's interests". asserted
Latvia → say → interests
Ambassadors from the EU's member countries were due to restart talks to try to resolve the impasse on Tuesday morning, diplomats said. asserted
diplomats → restart → morning
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