On Wednesday 7 June, the General Court of the European Union rejected the appeal lodged by Aleksandr Vasilevich Shakutin against the restrictive measures imposed on him by the EU on 17 December 2020 for his support of the Lukashenko regime in Belarus (see EUROPE 12625/12).
According to the General Court, the factual elements produced by the Council are sufficiently “concrete, precise and concordant” to establish that the Belarusian oligarch was one of the main businessmen operating in Belarus, one of the persons who benefited most from the privatisations carried out during Lukashenko’s presidency and a member (or former member) of the ‘Council for the Development of Entrepreneurship of the Republic of Belarus’ (CDE). In this capacity, Mr Shakutin benefited from and supported the Lukashenko regime, according to the General Court.
In its decision, the Council identified Mr Shakutin as “one of the leading businessmen operating in Belarus, with business interests in the construction, machinery manufacturing and agricultural sectors in particular” and as one of those who benefited from privatisations during the presidency of Alexander Lukashenko. According to the Council, he is also a member or former member of the presidium of the pro-Lukashenko public association ‘Belaya Rus’ and of the Council for the Development of Entrepreneurship of the Republic of Belarus (CDE). (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)