The Court of Justice of the EU rejected the claim of Grodno Azot and Khimvolokno Plant for the lifting of sanctions.
Grodno Azot is a Belarusian company which produces nitrogen compounds. Grodno Azot owns Khimvolokno Plant, which is a large manufacturer of polyamide and polyester and composite materials.. The companies are located in Grodno. Belorussian president Alexander Lukashenko described it as “a very important enterprise, a strategic one”
The EU imposed financial sanctions on Grodno Azot and Khimvolokno Plant in 2021 for supporting the Lukashenko regime.
Grodno Azot and Khimvolokno Plant asked The Court of Justice to lift sanctions cause that they have no form of control over the use of the funds which they pay to the Belarusian State and that those funds are not employed in financing the personal expenses of President Lukashenko.
However, the Court of Justice has decided to deny the request of Grodno Azot and Khimvolokno Plant.
According to court documents, “the grounds on which the assessment that the applicants support the Lukashenko regime is based are sufficiently detailed and specific, are free from error of assessment of the facts or error of law and constitute in themselves a sufficient basis for maintaining the applicants’ names on the lists at issue.”
