The Court of Justice of the EU decided on Thursday that the autocratic regime alone is not sufficient to justify the freezing of assets of companies with links to Russia. The ruling establishes that national authorities cannot apply sanctions based solely on the nature of the regime of the country of origin of the companies.
According to the EUCJ, authorities need solid and objective evidence demonstrating effective control over the companies in question. This means that a concrete connection between the companies and the Russian regime must be established, with mere suspicions or political associations being insufficient.
This decision comes in the context of sanctions imposed by the EU on Russia since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine. The court thus clarified the criteria that member states must follow when applying asset freezing measures to entities related to Russia.
