The money earned in the wake of Putin’s power does nothing for Russia – we found out what belongs to Russia’s richest people

Drunk-rich Russian entrepreneurs are currently living in considerable dismay, says the program director of the Foreign Policy Institute’s EU Eastern Neighborhood and Russia research program, an expert Arkady Moshes.

Most of Russia’s dozens, if not hundreds, of the oligarchs have remained fairly quiet since the start of the Russian invasion.

It is impossible to say how many of them genuinely oppose Putin’s actions. However, some outputs – and their consequences – have been reported in the media. We found out what belongs to the richest people in Russia now.

Last week, it was reported that a major owner, CEO and chairman of the board of Russian oil giant Lukoil Vagit Alekperov resigns. Lukoil issued a brief press release on the matter, but did not say the reason for the CEO’s departure.

Ukrainian billionaire banker Fridman has also stated (you are switching to another service)that any personal comments can be a risk – not only to himself but also to his company staff and colleagues.

He also became the richest man in Russia with steel Alexei Mordashov called the outbreak of war an “tragedy of two brothers” and stated that “we must do everything we can to end the conflict and the bloodshed”, reported by Forbes. (switch to another service)

Foreign policy institute Arkady Moshes says only a small percentage of Russians now have the courage to speak.

– For the most part, silence is due to helplessness learned. The people think that their actions are irrelevant. For the rich, silence is mainly caused by fear, Moshes says in a telephone interview.

According to him, Russian ecclesiastical people have reason to fear the expression of their opinion.

– They know how easily they can lose everything. It is quite clear that if the state leadership decides to investigate, all means will be used to prove the crimes. Money does not help protect from prison.

Former Kremlin insider and deputy governor of Russia’s third largest bank found dead in Moscow last week Vladislav Avayevhis wife Jelenaand the couple’s younger daughter, 13 years old Mary.

Another mystical suspicion of family death was revealed in Spain the next day. Russian background Sergei Protosenjahis wife Natalia and their daughters, 18 years old Mary was found dead at a family apartment in Lloret de Mar, Catalonia, on Tuesday, Spanish media say (switch to another service).

Authorities found Protosenja and other family members hanging from the yard inside the house, possibly killed with a knife or ax. Protosenja served as vice chairman of the board of the large natural gas company Novatek and accumulated hundreds of millions in assets.

Authorities have said they suspect family deaths and suicides, but the possibility of outside involvement has not been ruled out.

Moshes speculates that the cause of the deaths may be the loss of property, even though two deaths close in time can put thoughts at bay.

Moshes would not give much weight to the deaths, nor would they associate them with the Russian president Vladimir Putinalthough the loss of property is largely the result of the Russian invasion.

– Every Russian rich person has lost huge fortunes. Empires are collapsing, Moshes says.

The Kremlin has dared to be criticized with rare loud weights Oleg Tinkovthe founder of Tinkoff Online Bank, is one of Russia’s best-known entrepreneurs.

Tinkov, a cancer patient, is one of the highest-profile Russian influencers who has dared to condemn President Putin’s actions – at least in outright words.

Moshes estimates that Tinkov’s statement will have no effect on Putin. Instead of influencing, the reason for public comment may be elsewhere.

– It could have been a public relations stunt. The rich who make such exits may think that when the system disintegrates, it will be remembered who spoke against the Putin regime, Moshes ponders.

In the 1990s, Russian businessmen were called oligarchs who struggled for wealth during the privatization of state property following the fall of the Soviet Union.

The oligarchs became pig-rich and owned so much of Russia’s economic field that they were able to steer the country’s politics behind the scenes. Boris Yeltsin during the presidency. Indeed, an oligarchy, a rare power, refers to an administration in which power accumulates for a small elite based on origin or wealth.

Vladimir Putin put an end to the hustle and bustle of the oligarchs when he became president of the country and pranked major television companies for his first job.

Putin no longer banned the oligarchs from participating in state affairs, but they were allowed to keep the money. However, no opposition to the actions of the Russian administration was tolerated, the oligarchs were stressed. Some of them eventually fled the country, some adapted to the withering of influence.

So money no longer brings a place in the reins, even though the oligarch designation is still alive. But what about the owners of yachts and million-mansions who are being sanctioned because they have a good relationship with the president?

Moshes, an expert at the Foreign Policy Institute, says Putin’s insiders are made up of people who didn’t buy their power with money. However, people close to Putin are getting rich.

– They are not influential because they are rich. They are rich because they have influence. We are now talking, for example Yuri Kovaltshuksize Rotenberg about the family and Jevgeni PrigožinistaMoshes says.

The reasons for the rampage are war, the depreciation of the ruble and sanctions.

Although not all oligarchs are subject to direct sanctions, their wealth is declining considerably. According to Moshes, that’s right.

– These people have not benefited any less from Putin’s actions. They have lived a very nice life, making money for 20 years in Russia and enjoying their wealth in the West, Moshes says.

According to Moshes, the non-interference of the rich in the twists and turns of politics has now turned against them. The rich watched Putin’s actions from the sidelines and let everything happen. According to Moshes, it is only logical that they be punished.

– Anyone who has benefited from Putin would deserve to lose their assets. Much of the money has been stolen from the Russians anyway. It would be important for the Russian people to hear that the people who robbed them will suffer first, and that this robbed money may be used to revive the economy after the war, Moshes ponders.

Non-Russian crooks have also been guilty of public rhetoric.

Moshes highlights several individuals who have worked well with Russian companies, earned money, and then left the sinking ship only nominally: the money earned is still in their own account.

One of the most prominent examples still sailing on a Russian boat is the former German chancellor Gerhard Schröderwho still sits on the board of the Russian oil company Rosneft, among others.

According to the New York Times (you will switch to another service)Shcröder has already earned a total of $ 3 million from 2017, or $ 600,000 annually, from sitting on Rosneft’s board alone. Moshes finds this outrageous and comes up with a better use of funds for everyone who has received money from Russia.

– I have not heard that anyone who has worked in Russia since 2014 has given all the money they earn to charity, let alone to help Ukraine. Giving away the money would show that Europe is clean of corruption, Moshes says.

What about those Russian billionaires who are now wrestling with themselves wondering under whose eyes it is worth looking good now?

Moshes is confident that the law firms hired by the billionaires are now circulating to ask Western policymakers how donating to Ukraine could benefit.

– There should be no conditions. My advice is that if you feel like you’re doing the right thing, it’s worth doing. Billionaires can now jump off the ship or sink with it, Moshes says.

In addition to interviews and media sources, Steven Lee Myers’ work The New Tsar (2016) has been used as the source of the story.