Activists symbolically occupied a mansion in central London in protest at the slow implementation of British sanctions against Russian oligarchs.
On the balcony of the property linked to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, activists unfurled a banner reading “This property has been expropriated” and Ukrainian flags on Monday. Meanwhile, the British government announced further considerations on the accommodation of refugees.
The activists told the AFP news agency that they wanted to use the house to house Ukrainian refugees. It is not a squatting in the true sense, said one activist. “We are a property liberation front.”
With the action, participants criticized that the implementation of British sanctions against those identified by London as members of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “inner circle” was taking so long. “They say it could take up to six months to confiscate their property. That’s ridiculous,” said one activist.
The police, who were called to the property in the morning, first set up a cordon and then gained access to the villa by breaking down the door. Officials reached the balcony of the villa via a crane.
Deripaska is not listed in the UK land register as the owner of the property in the posh Belgravia area near Hyde Park. Instead, a company based in the British Virgin Islands is named as the owner.
The British government last week imposed sanctions on Deripaska and several other Russian oligarchs, including Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich. Their assets were frozen and entry bans were imposed on them.
In France, two men were arrested on Monday after breaking into a villa belonging to Putin’s former son-in-law in Biarritz, southern France, and unfurling a Ukrainian flag there.
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Meanwhile, the British government said it was “considering” housing Ukrainian refugees in confiscated houses owned by Russian oligarchs. Health Minister Sajid Javid had previously warned that the villas should “not be the first place” to be considered for hosting refugees. There are many “legal hurdles”.
Great Britain was recently criticized for its refugee policy, as it only accepts people from Ukraine who already have relatives in Great Britain. A government program called “Homes for Ukraine” is now set to change this: British people who take in refugees from Ukraine are to receive £350 (about 418 euros) a month.