According to the Foundation for Combating Corruption of Svetlan Polakov and her daughter Polina Kowalowa received citizenship of the United arabian Emirates in December 2022, after the Russian attack on Ukraine. Investigators tie both women to Sergei Lavrow. The revelation shows how the environment of the Kremel elite protects itself from Russia.
Two passports issued in December 2022
The Foundation against Corruption, founded by Alexey Navalny, reported that Svetlan Polakowa gained citizenship of the United arabian Emirates on 28 December 2022. In the documents, the origin was to be the merits of the state. Her daughter Polina Kowalski was to receive a passport on December 17 of the same year based on employment.
Information is described by an independent Russian portal Medusa, citing the findings of the FBK. Both papers were issued over 9 months after the start of a full-scale Russian assault on Ukraine. The West then extended sanctions against Russian authorities and people associated with the Kremlin.
The only information about passports is the establishment of the Corruption Foundation, an unverifiable court ruling. publically available materials do not contain a Polish or Blacksmith position against the latest publication. With specified serious allegations, this limit must stay clear.
The relation with Lavrow is described by investigative journalists
Svetlana's relation with Sergei Lavrow became the subject of investigative publications in 2021. According to the services of crucial Istoria, OCCRP and FBK, the female worked in the Russian Ministry of abroad Affairs and accompanied the minister during part of the trip. any people's telephone books said that her number was to be recorded under the name of the Jurov, although she had never formally worn it.
OCCRP and crucial past Investigation described belonging to the Poles and her household of properties in Russia and the United Kingdom with an estimated value of about a billion rubles. Journalists compared the size of the assets with the income resulting from the available registers. The Polish and Russian MFAs did not answer the OCCRP questions at the time.
Polina Kowalowa lived in the UK before the Russian invasion, studied at the Imperial College Business School and ran companies. In 2016, at the age of 21, she acquired the right to a 999-year lease of an flat in London Kensington for £4.4 million. After being sanctioned, she left large Britain and began working in Dosze.
British Government He entered Kowalski on the sanctioning list on March 24, 2022, pointing to her connection to the Russian abroad Minister. Sanctions included asset freeze. This is confirmed in the authoritative announcement of the authorities in London.
The Kremlin proclaims sacrifice, the elite search a way out
The case matters more than the destiny of 2 wealthy women. Sergei Lavrow has been representing a state for years, which depicts war as a civilization clash with the West and demands the Russians bear its costs. At the same time, people described as close to the minister utilized London properties, private travel and opportunities to settle in the rich Gulf states.
Russian propaganda demands sacrifices from average citizens while the environment of power secures assets and the right to reside outside the Russian Federation. It is simply a mechanics well known in authoritarian countries. authoritative patriotism can be an work for subjects, and the elite retains a contingency plan.
Poland cannot look at this gap as a crematory curiosity. Lavrow is the face of the diplomacy of a state that wages war in Ukraine and regularly strikes propaganda into our country. erstwhile Russian troops attack Kiev, and Poland picks up fighters, property and abroad ties of people from the vicinity of Russian power become an crucial component of the pressure.
Poland needs consistent sanctions policy
Sanctions make sense erstwhile they cover the regime's actual facilities, are based on verified data, and can be enforced. Cooperation between financial services, company registers and countries where Russian capital is trying to circumvent restrictions is needed. Declarations alone are not enough.
This does not mean consent to any charges. all case requires evidence and legal control. However, if the latest findings of the FBK are confirmed, they will show another crack in the Kremlin force system. For Poland, the hazard is the effectiveness of deterrence of Russia, not the satisfaction of watching the lives of its elites.
Source: Corruption Foundation, Medusa, OCCRP, WP News, UK Government.
Source: WP News
