As Novye Izvestia has already reported, FBI officers conducted searches in mansions in New York and Washington - these houses, according to the representative of the Russian businessman Oleg Deripaska, belong to his family.
The searches ended four hours apart. Before leaving the house in Washington, FBI agents carried dozens of boxes and suitcases from the buildings. The FBI officers did not clarify what was in them.
Deripaska's official representative Larisa Belyaeva clarified that the businessman is not the owner of the real estate in question - it is owned by his relatives.
“Searches are carried out on the basis of court orders related to US sanctions”, - Belyaeva said.
In connection with these events, Rusal's shares fell by more than 6%.
It is known that the American authorities canceled the visa of a Russian businessman back in 2006 - even before he was included in the OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control) "black list".
In addition, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Deripaska and the companies under his control in April 2018. The businessman could not get to the United States, and his assets in the country were frozen. In June of this year, he lost a lawsuit to lift the sanctions.
The influential American newspaper The Washington Post writes about a criminal case. Alleged possible charges: life threatening business competitors, illegal wiretapping of a government official, etc.
The searches could not go unnoticed in Russia. Journalist Kirill Shulika is sure that the topic with Deripaska will continue, and quite serious:
“It is clear that he will not go to the United States, he will not be arrested, although if there is a warrant, he will not leave Russia himself. But questions from the FBI to its lobbyists in the United States may appear.
In general, this is the regime of the very sanctions against business that Congress announced in connection with the proposals of Navalny's team. Sanctions do not have to be formalized. You can do it like that. At least other persons on the list will think about it.
In addition, this all looks like an attempt to nullify Victoria Nuland's visit to Russia, after which at least the possibility of a meeting between Putin and Biden has ceased to be ruled out. At the same time, searches at Deripaska's house began when it became known that such a meeting would not take place at the G-20 summit, because the Russian president would take part in it via video link.
In general, the most likely version of the searches in Deripaska's homes in the United States is the case against Paul Manafort. This is a Trump campaign staffer, a lobbyist who worked in the interests of Deripaska in the 2000s. Manafort is the Biden administration's only chance to prove Russian meddling in the 2016 elections, chances are minimal, but they could be used to prevent Trump from running for president again.
In addition to Deripaska's interests, Manafort also lobbied for the interests of Yanukovych and the Party of Regions, for which he received $ 13 million..."
Network analyst Anatoly Nesmiyan is confident that America has taken up Russia again:
"In this regard, a certain projection arises. Four months ago, a rather illogical personal meeting between Putin and Biden took place... Biden loosened the stranglehold and allowed the last kilometers of Nord Stream-2 to be completed without hindrance, and in general the topic of Russia almost dropped out of the US foreign policy agenda. However, in the same place on At the meeting (more precisely, after it), a mysterious phrase was sounded about a period of six months during which Putin must accomplish something. ”What exactly is still unclear.
It is possible that the American side, outwardly releasing Russia from the zone of direct attention, nevertheless counts these six months. And I came to the conclusion that things are not going very well. Not by agreement. Hence the indicative demarche in relation to the Russian billionaire..."
Journalist Vasily Alenin is amazed at the cynicism of Russian oligarchs, who profess patriotism in words, but in fact buy real estate in NATO countries:
“If this news is interesting, then what is once again exposed to the Russian public - Putin's“ patriotic ”business elite is still present not just in a NATO country, but in America, a key NATO country. Another discrediting of the elite, a demonstration of its hypocrisy.
It would seem that they should have sold everything there for a long time and, as the song says: “Home-oh-y! House-oh-oh!" Here, in the world of traditional values, military parades, the flourishing of import substitution, the revival of the state.
But no, they sit in America like wasps on a sweet cake. Calmed down. They are waiting for something. The FBI has already come up with questions. And they all do not leave the dangerous American land, do not fly to the east..."
Journalist Pavel Pryanikov also stands uphill for the nationalization of the Russian "elite", which teaches the country to "love the homeland":
“Maybe the oligarchy and the top Russian bosses will send the West back to us? Since the Russian authorities never bothered to “nationalize the elite”? So the personal sanctions of the West are the nationalization of the elite, and the majority of Russians should welcome them. Where does the country's authorities take money from, let them live there.
Yes, the Russian patriot turned out to be good, that until recently he taught us all in a telegram "to love the Motherland". And there was also a funny moment when some of the anonymous political channels predicted Deripaska's active participation in the Russian elections - he would almost go to the Duma himself, or head the Liberal Democratic Party.
I then wrote that it is legally impossible - Deripaska is a citizen of Cyprus. Well, he was not in the Duma..."