UK hits key figures in Russian oil trade with sanctions

Stay informed with free updates

Simply sign up to the War in Ukraine myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.

The UK has imposed sanctions on key figures it says are involved in the trade of Russian oil as it seeks to increase economic pressure on Moscow amid ongoing negotiations for a peace deal in Ukraine.

In what Prime Minister Keir Starmer described as the UK’s “largest ever sanctions package” against oil tankers in Russia’s so-called shadow fleet, the UK also targeted five traders from Azerbaijan, including Etibar Eyyub, Tahir Garayev and Ahmed Kerimov.

The decision to sanction the executives represents a significant escalation in the west’s effort to restrict the trade in Russian oil. The UK, US and EU have previously sanctioned companies alleged to be involved in the export of Russian oil but generally stopped short of targeting individuals.

The wide-ranging western sanctions regime against Moscow was designed to allow Russian oil to continue to flow but reduce the revenues collected by the Kremlin. In response, Russia built a network of oil tankers, shipping companies and traders to help circumvent many of the rules.

Eyyub, Garayev and Kerimov had all been “involved in obtaining a benefit from supporting the government of Russia by owning or controlling, directly or indirectly, or working as a director of Coral Energy (now 2Rivers Group),” the UK government said in its decision.

The UK linked Eyyub to two further companies, Nord Axis Ltd and BX Energy, which it also sanctioned on Friday.

It is the first time that authorities have publicly linked Eyyub to Coral Energy, which was founded by Garayev in 2010, and Nord Axis, which was among a group of traders that sprung up to trade Russian oil following President Vladimir Putin’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Nord Axis was incorporated on 15 February 2022, the week before Russian tanks crossed the Ukrainian border. Five months later, in July 2022, it emerged as the buyer of Trafigura’s multibillion-dollar stake in Russia’s giant Vostok oil project.

Terms of the deal between the two privately held companies were not disclosed. Trafigura said at the time Nord Axis had taken on the $5.8bn of “non-recourse bank debt” it had borrowed from Russian lenders to finance its original $7.3bn purchase of the asset. Trafigura declined to comment on the UK sanctions decision.

Coral has previously said it wound down its involvement in Russian oil before the introduction of western restrictions at the end of December 2022.

In 2024, Kerimov and two other Coral executives, Anar Madatli and Talat Safarov, who were also sanctioned on Friday, acquired the company from the original shareholder Garayev in a management buyout. They later rebranded it as 2Rivers Group. The UK sanctioned 2Rivers in December.

In statement to the Financial Times on behalf of 2Rivers, Madatli and Safarov, Kerimov said the sanctions “disregard” the company’s “proven record of lawful conduct and our ongoing collaboration with regulators to uphold the highest international standards”.

“The UK sanctions imposed, first on my company and now on me personally, are a grave and unjust action that fails to recognise the substantial reforms we have undertaken,” he said. “Since 2022, we have reduced activity and exited the Russian energy market, aligning fully with the G7 Price Cap Coalition’s requirements.”

Eyyub and Garayev could not immediately be reached for comment.

The UK also imposed sanctions on dozens of oil tankers, which it said had carried more than $24bn worth of cargo since the start of 2024.

“Every step we take to increase pressure on Russia and achieve a just and sustainable peace in Ukraine is another step towards security and prosperity in the UK,” Starmer said in a statement.