Information;Judgment — ECLI:EU:T:2023:849
Date: 2023-12-20
Language of the case: English
Court formation: First Chamber
Subject matter: External relations;Common foreign and security policy
Procedure: Action for annulment - unfounded

summary statement of reasons sufficient (Art. 296, second para., TFEU; Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811; Council Regulations No 269/2014, 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraphs 35-39, 42-44, 48-50) 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 of economic sector providing a substantial source of revenue (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811, Art. 2(1)(g); Council Regulation No 269/2014, Art. 3(1)(g), and Council Regulations Nos 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraphs 55, 115) 3. 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 – Restricted review for general rules – Criteria for adopting restrictive measures – Leading businesspersons involved in economic sectors providing a substantial source of revenue to the Government of Russia and natural or legal persons associated with them – Compliance with the principle of legal certainty requiring clarity, precision and foreseeability of the effects of legal rules (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811, Art. 2(1)(g); Council Regulation No 269/2014, Art. 3(1)(g), and Council Regulations Nos 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraphs 58, 59, 61-63) 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 – Inclusion on the lists based on a specific, precise and consistent set of indicia – Error of assessment – None (Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 47; Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811; Council Regulations No 269/2014, 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraphs 66-68, 98-101, 103, 109, 110, 113, 117, 118) 5. 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 – Inclusion of the applicant on the list annexed to the contested decision due to the applicant’s status as a leading businessperson involved in economic sectors providing a substantial source of revenue to the Government of the Russian Federation – Publicly available documents – Probative value (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decision (CFSP) 2022/397; Council Regulations No 269/2014 and 2022/396) (see paragraphs 79-86) 6. 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 of substantial source of revenue – Indirect taxes such as VAT – Included (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811, Art. 2(1)(g); Council Regulation No 269/2014, Art. 3(1)(g), and Council Regulations Nos 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraphs 106, 113) 7. 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 – None (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811; Council Regulation No 269/2014, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraphs 123, 124, 128-131, 141-144, 148, 149, 154) 8. 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 – Meaning – 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 – None (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811, Art. 2(1)(g); Council Regulation No 269/2014, Art. 3(1)(g), and Council Regulations 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraph 153) 9. Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Freezing of funds of certain persons and entities having regard to the situation in Ukraine – Restriction on the right to respect for private and family life, the right to property and the right to conduct a business – Breach of principle of proportionality – None (Art. 21(2)(b) TEU; Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Arts 7, 16, 17 and 52(1); Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811; Council Regulations No 269/2014, 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraphs 159-168, 171-173, 179) 10. Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures taken 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 – Measures to freeze funds not adopted by the Council in respect of other persons in an identical situation – Breach of the principle of equal treatment – None (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811, Art. 2(1)(g); Council Regulation No 269/2014, Art. 3(1)(g), and Council Regulations 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraphs 183-185) 11. Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Freezing of funds – Rights of the defence – Notification of inculpatory evidence – Subsequent decision maintaining the name of the applicant on the list of persons covered by those measures – No new grounds – Infringement of the right to be heard – None (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811; Council Regulations No 269/2014, 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraphs 190-193) 12. Common foreign and security policy – Restrictive measures taken in view of the situation in Ukraine – Freezing of funds – Rights of the defence – Subsequent decision maintaining the name of the applicant on the list of persons covered by those measures – Notification of inculpatory evidence – New grounds – Communication of the new evidence to the person concerned so that he or she can submit his or her obligations – Infringement of the right to be heard – None (Council Decision 2014/145/CFSP, as amended by Decisions (CFSP) 2022/397, (CFSP) 2022/1530, (CFSP) 2023/572 and (CFSP) 2023/811; Council Regulations No 269/2014, 2022/396, 2022/1529, 2023/571 and 2023/806) (see paragraph 194) Operative part The Court: 1. Dismisses the action; 2. Orders Mr Vadim Nikolaevich Moshkovich to pay the costs. 1 OJ C 257, 4.7.2022.