The European Court of Justice refused the Russian Direct Investment Fund’s (RDIF) request to lift EU sanctions against it.
In court, the foundation argued that the Council of the European Union distorted the role of the President and Prime Minister of Russia in its management by incorrectly citing a link from the foundation’s website.
According to the fund, in reality, it was managed by its own management company, JSC Management Company of the Russian Direct Investment Fund.
Additionally, the RDIF argued that its investments were not related to military projects but rather included projects that benefited the entire world, such as significant investments in developing an effective COVID-19 vaccine.
However, these arguments were not enough to convince the court, which upheld the sanctions.
RDIF was established in 2011 at the initiative of the President and Prime Minister of Russia. It invested more than 2.2 trillion rubles, with more than 300 billion coming from the RDIF, and 1.9 trillion coming from partners. Kirill Dmitriev heads the Foundation.
