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Latvia has declared 10 individuals named in The Insider's recent investigation “persona non grata,” Foreign Minister Baiba Braže wrote on X earlier today.
The investigation detailed how sanctioned oligarchs continued to conduct business in Latvia through proxies and how prominent Russians who openly support Vladimir Putin’s policies maintain personal property in the EU country.
It also revealed that, despite efforts to curb Moscow's influence over its Baltic neighbor, Latvia until recently remained home to a thriving subsidiary of Russia’s state-owned gas corporation Gazprom — and to Russian military contractors, who continue to develop their Latvian businesses.
Those designated as “persona non grata” include:
- Elena Ruziak, chief manager of the Rotenberg family's overseas assets;
- Denis Pospelov, a representative of the Rotenbergs' business interests in Latvia;
- Oleg Belkov, co-owner of a Russian shipyard that makes military vessels — and a minority shareholder of Latvia’s Rietumu Banka. Rietumu Banka, in turn, is a shareholder of AS Latvijas Gāze — a Latvian natural gas firm in which Gazprom was the largest shareholder (34%) at the time the investigation was published (Oct. 5, 2024);
- Sergey Pasters, co-owner of Russia's Armator LLC (ООО «Арматор») — a contractor for the “Zvezdochka” Ship Maintenance Center, who also owns a port business in the Baltics;
- Ivan Sadchikov, a key figure in corruption schemes linked to Russia’s Tactical Missiles Corporation and the owner of a home in the Latvian village of Amatciems;
- Tatjana Krivenko, a former State Duma MP from the ruling United Russia party — which is de facto headed by Vladimir Putin — and her husband, film director Valery Fokin (one of Vladimir Putin’s official representatives during Russia’s presidential elections in 2012). They jointly own an apartment in the resort town of Jūrmala;
- Andrey Bolotov, the former son-in-law of Nikolai Tokarev, Putin’s KGB colleague and the current president of the Russian pipeline company Transneft. Bolotov has been involved in corruption schemes in Russia and owns property in Jūrmala;
- Natalya Timakova, former press secretary to Russia’s ex-president Dmitry Medvedev, along with her husband Alexander Budberg. They also own a house in Jūrmala.
These individuals are now banned from entering Latvia indefinitely.
Gazprom's stake in Latvijas Gāze
In a deal in October, 27.85% of the shares of Latvijas Gāze (LG) owned by Gazprom were bought back by a special purpose vehicle set up by board members of LG, SIA Energy investment, and Lithuania's UAB Haupas.
The representatives of the company told the LETA newswire the changes mean the majority of the shareholders of Latvijas Gāze are now citizens of Latvia.
Arkady and Boris Rotenberg
Arkady and Boris Rotenberg are Russian businessmen and oligarchs known for their close association with President Vladimir Putin. Both brothers trained in judo with Putin during their youth, establishing a longstanding personal and professional relationship. Arkady is widely known to be one of Vladimir Putin's key “wallets” — trusted individuals who mask ownership of assets and accounts that, in fact, are controlled by the Russian president.
Arkady co-founded the Stroygazmontazh (SGM) group with his brother, which became Russia's largest construction company for gas pipelines and electrical power supply lines. He has been involved in significant infrastructure projects — including the construction of the Kerch Strait Bridge, a 12-mile span connecting mainland Russia to the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula of Ukraine, which was completed in 2018.
The Rotenbergs' friendship with Putin have helped Stroygazmontazh — and a number of other companies under their control — secure lucrative state contracts. Both Arkady and Boris have been subject to international sanctions since the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014.