The European Court of Justice refused to lift sanctions against Russian businessman Igor Kesaev.
Igor Kesaev is the owner and president of Mercury Group, which includes the largest tobacco distributor in Russia, Megapolis, the Dixi retail chain, and the major developer Mercury Development. The hearing of the case T-290/22 was held in the Court of Justice of the European Union on September 4.
According to the case file, sanctions were imposed against Igor Kesaev because he is the owner and chairman of Mercury, a leading tobacco distributor in Russia, which is owned by the Megapolis group. He also has links with government officials and security agencies through Monolith, a foundation run by former Russian special service officers that provides financial assistance to police and military personnel.
Additionally, he is a major shareholder in the Degtyarev company, a Russian weapons manufacturer used by the military. Kesaev is an influential businessperson active in sectors that constitute a significant portion of the government’s revenue.
In the court, Igor Kesaev argued the fact that he was president of the Mercury Group and one of the owners of Megapolis was insufficient to justify his inclusion on the sanctions list.
However, the court did not agree with Igor Kesayev. The documents contained, in particular, the following information: “During 2018-2019, tobacco products generated approximately 560 billion rubles in tax revenue in Russia (approximately €5.4bn. This amount increased by about 20% in 2020… These figures confirm the importance of the tobacco industry in the Russian economy, and therefore, this sector is a significant source of revenue for the government of Russia.”
