French Prosecutors Open Probe into Russian Oligarchs: Legal Source

French prosecutors have opened an investigation into the assets owned by Russian oligarchs, a legal source said on Monday.

The probe is expected to look into possible money laundering and corruption.

The investigation, first reported by the Parisien newspaper, comes after anti-graft group Transparency International filed a legal complaint against oligarchs in France in May. 

France has frozen Russian-owned assets worth billions of euros since the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine in February, including luxury yachts, ski chalets and property.

The country's Mediterranean coast, high-end ski resorts and Parisian real estate market have long been favoured destinations for Russian cash for investment and leisure.

"The ambitions of the sanctions regime against Russia and the first asset seizures are running into difficulties in identifying the assets owned by sanctioned individuals," Transparency International France said in a statement last month.

"In France, as elsewhere, the hunt for goods owned by oligarchs and others close to the Russian regime is at a standstill," it added as it filed its legal case. 

The French government has said it faces serious difficulties in identifying and seizing assets that are often owned by overseas shell companies. 

Transparency International said it had "drawn up an inventory of real estate assets in France of several oligarchs and people close to the Russian regime".

It said it possessed evidence of how the money used to pay for them came from illicit sources. 

European Union countries have frozen assets worth 13.8 billion euros ($14.1 billion) linked to sanctioned Russian and Belarusian individuals, according to figures from July 12. 

The EU has so far adopted six sanction packages against Russia, including a ban on most Russian oil imports that was approved in early June.

The French probe will be led by specialised investigators at the Central Office for the Repression of Major Financial Crime, part of the National Financial Prosecutors' Office. 

Source https://www.globalcourant.com/french-prosecutors-open-probe-into-russian-oligarchs-legal-source/?feed_id=1982&_unique_id=62ded9dc4a2a0

UK's foreign secretary blames French authorities for travel chaos

“This is a situation that is being caused by a lack of resources at the border and that is what the French authorities need to address and that is what I am being very clear about,” said UK's top diplomat Truss.

Car queue at the check-in at Dover Port as many families embark on getaways at the start of summer holidays for many schools in England and Wales, in Kent, England, Friday July 22, 2022. (AP)

The UK’s foreign secretary has blamed France for the travel chaos faced by many travelers and holidaymakers at the Port of Dover in southeast England.

Liz Truss, on Saturday, accused French authorities of not sending enough officials to man border posts and rejected French claims that Brexit was the cause of the chaos.

“The fact is that the French authorities have not put enough people on the border and I am in touch with the French authorities, I am very clear that we need to see action from them to resolve the terrible situation that people are facing,” Truss said in an interview with Sky News.

When asked if the chaos faced at the port is a result of post-Brexit border checks, the foreign secretary said the current situation is the result of a lack of resources.

“This is a situation that is being caused by a lack of resources at the border and that is what the French authorities need to address and that is what I am being very clear about,” Truss added.

UK blames France as British travellers face waits of up to six hours at the port of Dover for border checks pic.twitter.com/EKIuflFUZL

— TRT World (@trtworld) July 23, 2022

Brexit

French authorities have rejected claims by the British government that it is at fault for the delays and logjams, arguing instead that Brexit and the erection of border checks are the cause for delays and obstruction.

The UK’s official union for borders, the ISU, said Brexit had resulted in stringent checks at the country’s borders.

“It’s certainly the case that the checks are more rigorous than they used to be. Prior to Brexit, there was a deemed right of entry. We weren’t in Schengen but there were still very minimal checks ... and frequently there were no French checks at all,” ISU official Lucy Morton said.

“We’re now, of course, outside the EU and they’re entitled to treat us as they treat any other European traveller. So they do the same level of checks we do, and have always done, on them,” Morton added.

On Friday, the Port of Dover, a major terminal for travelers seeking entry into France, Belgium, and the Netherlands, declared a "critical incident" after travelers faced queues that lasted up to six hours.

Source: AA

Source https://www.globalcourant.com/uks-foreign-secretary-blames-french-authorities-for-travel-chaos/?feed_id=1158&_unique_id=62dcd4db39cd7