Billionaire Alisher Usmanov won another major court victory in Germany. The Hamburg Land Court upheld the businessman's claim, finding the information disseminated by the renowned Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) to be slanderous. By court order, the publication was strictly prohibited from disseminating allegations about Usmanov's connections with the Kremlin and the alleged use of his wealth for political purposes.
Unfounded accusations of the German publication and judicial punishment
According to the document published by the court on January 23, the FAZ newspaper published a number of inaccurate information about Usmanov. Including:
- Kremlin instruction: Claims that the businessman used his funds in the interests of the Russian government were deemed unfounded.
- Activities in Uzbekistan: Usmanov's allegations of informal representation of Russian power in Uzbekistan were considered slander.
- Editorial Policy: The accusations of interference in the affairs of "Kommersant'" were also not proven.
According to the decision, for violating the ban, the publication may be fined up to 250 thousand euros or those responsible may be subjected to administrative arrest.
Navalny's claims were banned in the European court for the first time
Another important aspect of this process is that the court of European jurisdiction for the first time banned the dissemination of Alexei Navalny's statements against Usmanov. This information, previously deemed false by Russian courts, has now been recognized as "discrediting rumors" in the European legal space.
The basis of the sanctions is questionable
Alisher Usmanov's lawyer, Joachim Steinhefel, stated that such false articles and Navalny's statements were the main lever in the European Union's sanctions against the businessman. The Hamburg court's decision proves that EU sanctions are a "collection of illegal accusations."
Sequential wins and reclaimed reputation
This is not Usmanov's first victory against Western media. Earlier, he also denied the information about the Dilbar superyacht in court. Also:
- Investigations have been suspended: cases of money laundering and sanctions violations opened against an entrepreneur in Germany in 2024 and 2025 have been closed.
- Amount of wealth: According to Forbes, as of April 2025, the billionaire's wealth is $16.7 billion.
Today, the USM founder continues to fight against EU restrictions and emphasizes that discriminatory principles have been applied to him.
Do you think such decisions of the European courts will lead to the removal of Alisher Usmanov from the sanctions list?
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