More Russian Oligarchs Including Putin’s Girlfriend” Sanctioned by U.S. “

The purported lover of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the billionaire who owns the second-largest estate in London were both banned by the United States on Tuesday as part of the most recent round of sanctions related to the invasion of Ukraine. U.S. business sanctions also apply to a number of other oligarchs thought to be connected to Putin, four Russian administrators in the Ukrainian territories they have annexed, and roughly twenty high-tech organizations and corporations, including significant state-backed electronics firms.

The Witanhurst estate, a 25-bedroom mansion, is the second largest in London after Buckingham Palace owned by Vladimir Putin’s close friend and millionaire Andrey Guriev. Guriev founded PhosAgro, a significant provider to the global fertilizer market, and served as its former vice chairman. He and his son received financial fines and were forbidden from doing business with American companies including banks with American branches, and had their assets under American jurisdiction frozen.

The Finance Ministry has imposed sanctions on both Natalya Popova, the wife of Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the sizable sovereign wealth fund managed by the Russian government, and former Olympic gymnast Alina Kabaeva, also known as Putin’s lover. According to the Finance Ministry, Popova worked for Innopraktika, a technology business controlled by one of Putin’s daughters.

Viktor Filipovich Rashnikov, one of the biggest taxpayers in Russia, and his two MMK businesses, which are among the biggest steel producers in the world, were also sanctioned. The State Department imposed combined sanctions on oligarchs like Dmitry Pumpyanskiy, Andrey Melnichenko and Alexander Ponomarenko who manage major income-generating firms. Visa restrictions are among the sanctions. The State Department added a list of almost 900 people who support the Russian occupation of Crimea, including over 900 Russian officials, 31 unnamed non-Russian officials, and nearly 900 others.