EU General Court Rejects Delisting Application From Belarus Businessman

The EU General Court on Sept. 6 upheld the European Council's sanctions listing of Belarusian businessman Mikail Gutseriev, finding that the European Council correctly interpreted the listing criteria to include nonfinancial types of support for the Belarus regime. Gutseriev, sanctioned in 2021, argued that the listing criteria under the Belarus sanctions regime should include only financial support, given its language saying parties shall be listed due to their "benefit from or support for" the Belarus government.

The court said that because "benefit from or support for" President Alexander Lukashenko's regime "can take various forms, the restrictive measures taken against the persons and entities benefiting from or supporting that regime other than financially or materially must be regarded not only as appropriate but even as necessary in order to achieve" the sanctions' objectives.

The court said Gutseriev supported the regime and benefited from it as a businessman with interests in the potash and energy sectors.