Judgment;Information — ECLI:EU:T:2023:850
Date: 2023-12-20
Language of the case: French
Court formation: First Chamber
Subject matter: External relations;Common foreign and security policy
Procedure: Action for annulment - successful

Judgment of the General Court (First Chamber) of 20 December 2023 – Mndoiants v Council (Case T‑390/22) (1) ( Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures adopted in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine – Freezing of funds – List of persons, entities and bodies subject to the freezing of funds and economic resources – Restrictions on entry into the territory of the Member States – List of persons, entities and bodies subject to restrictions on entry into the territory of the Member States – Inclusion and maintenance of the applicant’s name on the lists – Concept of ‘leading businessperson’ – Article 2(1)(g) of Decision 2014/145/CFSP – Article 3(1)(g) of Regulation (EU) No 269/2014 – Error of assessment ) 1. European Union – Judicial review of the legality of the acts of the institutions – Restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Scope of the review – Proof that the measure is well founded – Obligation on the competent EU authority to establish, in the event of challenge, that the reasons relied on against the persons or entities concerned are well founded – Error of assessment (Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 47; Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/582, (CFSP) 2022/1530 and (CFSP) 2023/572; Council Regulations No 269/2014, 2022/581, 2022/1529 and 2023/571) (see paragraphs 37-39, 69, 70, 74-76, 81-83, 86, 95-102, 105-107) 2. Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Criteria for adopting restrictive measures – Leading businesspersons involved in economic sectors providing a substantial source of revenue to the Government of the Russian Federation and persons associated with them – Concept – No need to establish direct links or a relation of interdependence between the person subject to the measures and the Russian Government or its actions undermining the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/582, (CFSP) 2022/1530 and (CFSP) 2023/572, Art. 2(1)(g); Council Regulations No 269/2014, Art. 3(1)(g), 2022/581, 2022/1529 and 2023/571) (see paragraphs 62-64) 3. European Union – Judicial review of the legality of the acts of the institutions – Restrictive measures against certain persons and entities in view of the situation in Ukraine – Freezing of the funds of leading businesspersons involved in economic sectors providing a substantial source of revenue to the Government of the Russian Federation and persons associated with them – Scope of the review – Assessment of the legality by reference to the information available at the time of adoption of the decision (Art. 275, second para., TFEU; Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decision (CFSP) 2022/582; Council Regulations No 269/2014 and 2022/581) (see paragraph 84) 4. European Union – Judicial review of the legality of the acts of the institutions – Restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Scope of the review – Proof that the measure is well founded – Obligation on the competent EU authority to establish, in the event of challenge, that the reasons relied on against the persons or entities concerned are well founded – Breadth of the discretion of that competent authority – Relevance of evidence produced on the basis of a previous inclusion where there are no amendments to the grounds for inclusion or changes in the applicant’s situation or in the context in Ukraine – Changes in the applicant’s situation (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decision (CFSP) 2022/1530; Council Regulations No 269/2014 and 2022/1529) (see paragraphs 87-90) Operative part The Court: 1. Annuls Council Decision (CFSP) 2022/582 of 8 April 2022 amending Decision 2014/145/CFSP concerning restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine; Council Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/581 of 8 April 2022 implementing Regulation (EU) No 269/2014 concerning restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine; Council Decision (CFSP) 2022/1530 of 14 September 2022 amending Decision 2014/145/CFSP concerning restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine; Council Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/1529 of 14 September 2022 implementing Regulation (EU) No 269/2014 concerning restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine; Council Decision (CFSP) 2023/572 of 13 March 2023 amending Decision 2014/145/CFSP concerning restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine; and Council Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/571 of 13 March 2023 implementing Regulation (EU) No 269/2014 concerning restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine, in so far as they concern Mr Serguey Mndoiants; 2. Orders the Council of the European Union to pay the costs. 1 OJ C 311, 16.8.2022.