The European Court in Luxembourg excluded the former head of Eurochem, Vladimir Rashevsky, from the sanctions lists, according to the court’s website.

The court ruled that Rashevsky’s presence on the sanctions list was unfounded: since he resigned as chief executive officer of the Eurochem group, his activities did not meet the criteria for sanctions, the court concluded. The court invalidated the decisions of the Council of the European Union, according to which the restrictive measures were extended from September 2022 to March 2024.

Rashevsky came under EU sanctions on March 15, 2022 as part of the fourth package of restrictions. The motivational part mentioned his and other businessmen's participation in "a meeting of oligarchs with [Russian President] Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin to discuss a course of action after Western sanctions."

The justification also stated that between 2004 and 2020, Rashevsky led the SUEK coal company. “There are large Russian companies, co-owned by billionaire Andrei Melnichenko, that bring significant income to the Russian government. They also cooperate with the Russian authorities, including Vladimir Putin,” the authors of the document explained.

On the day the sanctions were imposed, March 15, 2022, Rashevsky left the post of CEO of Eurochem, and at the same time he resigned from the board of directors of the company.

Eurochem explained Rashevsky's resignation by the need to ensure uninterrupted business operations and help the company ensure global food security.

Eurochem produces nitrogen, phosphorus and potash fertilizers. The beneficiary of EuroChem Group (the parent company of Eurochem) was previously billionaire Andrei Melnichenko. However, in March 2022, after falling under European sanctions, the businessman lost control over the company and left its board of directors.

A RBC source close to Eurochem said that Melnichenko ceased to be a beneficiary of the company the day before sanctions were imposed against him.

Rashevsky was Melnichenko’s partner for many years; since 2004, he headed SUEK, of which he was also a beneficiary. As of 2020, he owned a 7.8% stake in the company. In 2018, Forbes estimated Rashevsky’s fortune at $550 million.