Russian state departments do not value their foreign real estate

    After the introduction of sanctions against 351 State Duma deputies, the authorities of European countries began to close the airspace for aircraft from Russia.

    In fact, Russians who own foreign real estate have been cut off from their property. About 24 parliamentarians sit in the State Duma and the Federation Council, whose families can own real estate abroad. The Daily Storm contacted some politicians and found out what they think about the current situation. Spoiler: MPs do not regret their decisions.

    What fate will befall the real estate of Russian politicians?

    Experts believe that after the imposition of sanctions, foreign assets of deputies will be frozen. However, the property of the Russians is unlikely to be taken away. President of the International Academy of Mortgage and Real Estate Irina Radchenko claims that the authorities of European countries will not be able to deprive foreigners of real estate without a court decision. Therefore, most likely, the property will simply be sealed until better times.

    “There must be a good reason for the withdrawal. If people are simply deprived of real estate, for many countries it will be unattractive from an investment point of view. Why do people flock to London? There, the court works according to justice, and not according to instructions from above. Plus, the proceedings take a long time, they can last five or 10 years, ”explained the expert.

    According to Ivan Timofeev, a member of the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC), after the “freeze”, real estate will hang like a dead weight. It will not be possible to pay the bills for it, it will not be possible to sell it or rent it to anyone. However, the expert noted that these restrictions may not affect the next of kin.

    “From the point of view of EU law, sanctions do not apply to families. If formally some real estate belongs to another person, that is, to a relative, then for now they can use it, ”the RIAC member specified.

    However, the expert recalled that now there is a problem with access to this property. European countries are solving the issue of canceling visas for Russians, while all flights for Russian ships over the EU countries have actually been suspended. As of March 1, a total of 37 states have closed their airspace, including the US and Canada. As for the real estate of parliamentarians who did not fall under sanctions, in this case it remains to wait for the removal of restrictions, Timofeev concluded.

    Which countries have politicians chosen?

    According to Daily Storm estimates, about 24 parliamentarians from the State Duma and the Federation Council indicated overseas real estate in their past declarations. In some cases, the owners were the wives or husbands of politicians. Senators and deputies reported on real estate in various countries, including post-Soviet states. However, Bulgaria and Spain became the most common destinations.

    Six members of the Federation Council have foreign real estate. According to the declaration for 2020, Senator Dmitry Saveliev owns a house in the UK. Politician Andrei Klishas owns a dacha in Switzerland. Senator Sergey Lukin, as of 2020, owned a 30-meter apartment in Montenegro. Lyubov Glebova shares a plot of land and a house in Germany with her husband, while Senator Alexander Bryksin, according to an old Duma declaration, has an apartment in Spain. Senator Oleksandr Yaroshuk stands out from the general list. The last time he reported on the presence of a house in Belarus.

    On February 24, for security reasons, Belarus closed its airspace, but the country bordering Russia can still be reached by land. Other states impose restrictions on access to airspace for aircraft from Russia. This decision was made even by Montenegro, which is just a candidate for NATO membership, and Switzerland, which is not part of the alliance.

    According to Daily Storm estimates, in the VIII convocation of the State Duma, at least 18 deputies (including their wives and husbands) may have overseas real estate. Four politicians have declared property in Spain. According to the declaration for 2020, the wife of Nikolai Valuev and the wife of Vadim Belousov owned the house in this country. In addition, the living space in Spain belonged directly to the deputy Konstantin Zatulin, three more apartments were owned by Arkady Ponomarev.

    Also, four parliamentarians indicated real estate in Bulgaria in their reporting. Former member of the Federation Council and current State Duma deputy Viktor Smirnov owns seasonal apartments. Three more parliamentarians – Sergey Pakhomov, Maxim Topilin and Mikhail Berulava – indicated in 2020 that their wives own real estate in Bulgaria. By the way, on February 26, the Bulgarian authorities announced that they would close the airspace for Russian ships. The decision was made in connection with the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine.

    Deputies reported on real estate in other countries. For example, Andrei Gorokhov owns property in Austria, and Vladimir Blotsky indicated in the declaration for 2020 a plot with a house in the UK.

    Valery Gartung’s wife owns real estate in Switzerland and Cyprus, and Oksana Dmitrieva’s husband owns property in Greece, follows from the reporting that the parliamentarian submitted to the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg.

    Oleg Savchenko, being a deputy of the Volgograd Regional Duma, indicated in the reporting a residential building in Italy. The wife of Rifat Shaikhutdinov also owns real estate in this country. Shaikhutdinov himself owns a farm in Finland.

    The deputy from Bashkortostan is not the only one who owns property in the countries bordering Russia. For example, Vladislav Tretyak has two apartments and a plot in Latvia, Svetlana Savitskaya’s husband owns real estate in friendly Belarus, and Crimean Leonid Babashov indicated real estate in Ukraine in his old reporting. In particular, he owns land in the Kiev region. Another MP, Otari Arshba, shares an apartment with his wife in Georgia.

    And if air traffic with the Transcaucasian country was interrupted back in 2019, then in other cases the sky began to close in late February – early March, after the start of the military operation in Ukraine. Russia introduced retaliatory measures and closed flights for aircraft from 36 countries.

    Our Motherland is dearer to us!

    Foreign property owners interviewed by the Daily Storm unanimously stated that they do not regret the decisions made and are not currently worried about the fate of their property.

    A member of the “United Russia” and the Committee on CIS Affairs Konstantin Zatulin has long been under the sanctions of Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Estonia. In addition to the fact that the deputy cannot physically get to his property in Spain, the European Union imposed restrictions on him. In a conversation with the Daily Storm, the deputy said that he last visited Spain in January 2022, before that he had not been there for more than two years.

    “I take it easy. As for my apartment, this apartment is not for me a condition for my position, which I take on this or that issue, ”commented Zatulin.

    The wife of a deputy from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, Mikhail Berulava, owns two apartments in Bulgaria of 50 square meters each. According to the deputy, before the call of the Daily Storm correspondent, he did not even think about them. He is now worried about completely different issues.

    “The main thing is that people do not die. Our president did the right thing. It is necessary that there be peace, that Russia feel calm and prosper. And about all this later, no big deal. Sanctions don’t even bother me, ”Berulava, who also fell under EU sanctions, shared his thoughts.

    The wife of Sergei Pakhomov, chairman of the State Duma committee on construction and housing and communal services, owns an apartment in Bulgaria together with her parents. Pakhomov is not sure that over the past few years his wife has been there at all. According to the deputy, he himself visited a foreign apartment only once in his life. Therefore, his family does not worry about restrictions.

    “Even if you have to give it away, let it be taken away, there are no problems in this. Our Motherland is dearer to us. Let them choke, we won’t even lift a finger. Previously, it was clear that these sanctions would be introduced anyway,” Pakhomov assured.

    Arkady Ponomarev, a deputy and owner of Molvest, is also under sanctions. Recall that he owns three apartments in Spain. However, the deputy told the Daily Storm that he did not even know what state they were in. He assured that he had not been in this country for more than two years, and therefore the separation from his foreign property does not bother him. Even if it is expropriated by the Spanish government.

    “Any similar apartment in Moscow or Sochi is much more expensive. And even if we assume that I will have this loss, I will still vote the way I voted. This is not a vital issue for me. It’s about the same as if something breaks down or my car gets into an accident – ​​well, it’s a pity, but so what?” Ponomarev summed up.