Latvia May Strip Citizenship as Scrutiny on Russian Billionaire Grows

(Bloomberg) -- Latvia is introducing legislation that would allow citizenship to be revoked, a move that comes after calls to rescind the status of sanctioned Russian billionaire Petr Aven in response to the invasion of Ukraine.

Aven, whose net worth is $5.7 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, has had his assets frozen since he came under European Union penalties in response to Russia's attack. In Latvia, he's been stripped of an honorary doctorate and a top state award.

Now, his citizenship in the former Soviet republic may be on the line. Justice Minister Janis Bordans sent a set of proposed amendments to a parliamentary committee this week, his spokesman told Bloomberg News. The ministry said the rules aren't meant to target any specific individual and didn't name Aven.

“I have Latvian roots, I appreciate and love this country,” Aven said in a message. “I have repeatedly stated that I am against the war, there is no justification for it.” He said, “I think this initiative was put forward by someone in some ‘moment of weakness' and will go unnoticed.”

The amendments would let citizenship be revoked for those who offer support for carrying out “war crimes, genocide and crimes against peace and against civilization,” the text says. Although the text doesn't explicitly refer to Russia, the language on war crimes reflects the Latvian government's accusation that President Vladimir Putin's forces have committed such crimes.

Latvian security officials would make the determination on whether citizens met those standards, according to a procedure laid out in the draft. The changes would have to be approved by parliament.

The legislation also stipulates that a Latvian national can be targeted for providing false information or “concealing facts” in the application process. Aven, whose grandfather was Latvian, was granted citizenship in 2016 after meeting naturalization requirements and passing a language exam. The billionaire has been accused in media reports of receiving help passing the language test.

Aven had won admirers in the nation of 1.9 million with his local charity. But Putin's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, coupled with the reports about the language test, triggered calls in Latvia to strip Aven of his citizenship, a measure not currently possible under the country's law. Bordans had said his ministry would study the issue.

In imposing sanctions on Aven, the EU said the billionaire “is one of Vladimir Putin's closest oligarchs,” who meets the Russian leader often. The 27-member bloc accused Aven and his business partner Mikhail Fridman of trying to assist the Kremlin in lifting Russian sanctions imposed due to its annexation of Crimea in 2014.

A statement issued on behalf of Fridman and Aven following the EU's approval of the measures against them said they plan to contest a move based on “malicious and deliberate falsehoods.”

Along with Fridman, Aven has stepped down from his boards and management posts of his companies, including Alfa-Bank, Russia's largest privately held bank, and investment firm LetterOne.