Trump administration to lift sanctions on companies of Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Oleg Deripaska in 2008
(Image credit: Ilia Pitalev/AFP/Getty Images)

On Wednesday, the Treasury Department informed Congress that it intends to lift sanctions on three companies tied to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and a name familiar to people following Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian election interference. The U.S. imposed sanctions on Deripaska and his three companies — Rusal, the world's No. 2 aluminum company; Russian energy company EuroSibEnergo; and their parent company, EN+ Group — in April, in retaliation for the Russian election meddling and other hostile acts.

The sanction on Deripaska himself will remain in place, and the Treasury Department has allowed the companies to continue operating since April while they negotiated a settlement with U.S. regulators. Under the binding agreement announced Wednesday, Deripaska will reduce his stake in EN+ to 44.95 percent from 70 percent, won't be able to increase his stake, and won't have access to the proceeds from the sales of his shares or future dividends issued by the companies. Those and other concessions will be overseen by the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.