Audio By Carbonatix
The UK sanctioned Polina Kovaleva, stepdaughter of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who owns a luxury £4 million ($5 million) property in London.
The blacklisting was announced Thursday by Foreign Secretary Liz Truss as part of a range of new sanctions targeting Russian elites, banks and businesses.
The announcement confirms reporting by Maria Pevchikh, an investigator at jailed Russian opposition leader Alexander Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation.
In a recent Twitter thread said that Lavrov had a second family, and that his stepdaughter, Kovaleva, enjoyed a lavish lifestyle in the West.
I would like you to meet Polina Kovaleva. Polina is a 26-year-old glamorous Russian girl from London🇬🇧. She lives in a huge apartment in Kensington and loves to party, her instagram feed looks like a non-stop holiday. That’s not unheard of, but there is one small detail…(THREAD) pic.twitter.com/6OsVGjPxQQ
— Maria Pevchikh (@pevchikh) March 10, 2022
Kovaleva, 26, owns a lavish apartment in Kensington, one of the most expensive parts of London.
Per Pevchikh, she is reportedly the daughter of Svetlana Polyakova, 51, Lavrov's longterm partner. UK property records show that Kovaleva bought the Kensington property with no mortgage in 2016, aged 21.
The UK Foreign Office said its sanctioning "sends a strong signal that those benefiting from association of those responsible for Russian aggression are in scope of our sanctions."
The sanctions mean that Kovaleva's assets in the UK have been frozen, and she is banned from travelling to the UK.
UK lawmakers had called for Kovaleva to be sanctioned ahead of the announcement, reported The Guardian.
Lavrov is a longtime member of Russian President Vladimir Putin's inner circle, and has fiercely defended Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. He has already been sanctioned by the US and other Western countries.
Sanctioning the children and other family members of top Russian officials has been a striking feature of the response to the war in Ukraine, apparently designed to make sure the measures take a personal toll on decision-makers. They may also be meant to stop sanctions evasion by allowing people to access assets held by family members.
On March 11, the US sanctioned Elizaveta Peskova, the daughter of Putin Dmitry Peskov. Peskova in an interview with Insider said the sanctions had ruined her travel plans and called them "totally unfair and unfounded."
Latest Stories
-
Analysis: Why the cedi is depreciating
44 minutes -
What are they hiding? – Tech consultant questions rush for 15 digital bills
46 minutes -
To nationalise or transform? Joy Business hosts roundtable on Ghana’s extractive future
48 minutes -
This is not how modern innovation ecosystems are built – Tech analyst warns over NITA Bill
1 hour -
A web developer could become a criminal – NITA Bill sparks fear among young innovators
1 hour -
Mercy Johnson faces backlash over $18.24 menstrual kit
2 hours -
EU plans to fine Google high triple-digit million euro sum, Handelsblatt reports
2 hours -
Senegal’s Faye names economist Lo as new prime minister
2 hours -
Landslide at Angola illegal gold mine kills 28
2 hours -
The Draft NITA Bill should be shredded
2 hours -
Eni and partners approve new development phase for Ivory Coast project
2 hours -
Gov’t signals tougher scrutiny before renewing Gold Fields’ Tarkwa lease, Reuters report
3 hours -
Africa must build strong systems to achieve sporting success — Herbert Mensah
3 hours -
Gunmen abduct 25 people in twin attacks in Nigeria’s Kwara state, police say
3 hours -
Ebola patients flee in attacks on Congo health facilities, hobbling response
3 hours