Yanukovych son gains Russian citizenship amid EU sanctions
Oleksandr Yanukovych, the sole surviving son of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, has been granted Russian citizenship, reports "The Moscow Times," citing the government agency RIA Novosti. Two years ago, both were subjected to European Union sanctions for their support of Russia.
"The Moscow Times" notes that the 51-year-old Oleksandr Yanukovych had previously registered a company in Russia offering financial and industrial services in St. Petersburg. At that time, official documents indicated that he was a citizen of Ukraine. However, this appears to have changed.
The state news agency RIA Novosti reported that he now appears in the documents as a Russian citizen. However, it did not specify when Yanukovych received his new citizenship, the newspaper highlights.
Yanukovych fled from Ukraine
Oleksandr Yanukovych is the son of the former pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych, who fled the country following the Euromaidan protests in February 2014. The Ukrainian Parliament removed the president from power at that time.
Reuters reported that Viktor Yanukovych compared the revolution in the country to "the Nazi takeover in Germany in the 1930s." Meanwhile, he labelled the protesters in Maidan as "gangsters." The current President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, revoked former President Yanukovych's Ukrainian citizenship in 2023 as part of efforts to "cleanse" the country of pro-Russian influences.
Viktor Yanukovych and his son Oleksandr were placed on the sanctions list in 2022 and were banned from entering the European Union. Their assets were also frozen. The sanctions list, which included both Yanukovychs, identifies individuals, entities, and bodies subjected to sanctions for participating in actions undermining Ukraine's territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence, or threatening its stability and security. In the case of Oleksandr Yanukovych, there is an additional charge of conducting transactions with separatists in Donbas, eastern Ukraine.
The younger son of the former president, Viktor Yanukovych Jr., passed away in 2015. He reportedly drowned in Lake Baikal.
