In recent weeks, sanctions pressure on Russia has shown signs of easing, as evidenced by a series of decisions to lift restrictions on a number of Russian citizens. As reported by leading European publications, the European Union and the United States have begun to review their sanctions lists, excluding individuals whose involvement in the political or economic processes that caused the restrictions has proven insufficiently substantiated. Among those who have succeeded in lifting sanctions are Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev, businessman Boris Rotenberg's wife Karina Rotenberg, entrepreneur Vyacheslav Kantor, Alisher Usmanov's sister Gulbahor Ismailova, and former head of EuroChem Vladimir Rashevsky. These cases have become an indicator of a change in approaches to sanctions policy, despite the West's continuing harsh rhetoric toward Moscow.

The initiator of the revision of sanctions against Degtyarev, Kantor, Ismailova and Rashevsky was Hungary, which, according to European diplomats, actively defended the need to ease the restrictions. Budapest, threatening to veto the extension of the sanctions regime, achieved the exclusion of these individuals from the EU lists in March 2025. At the same time, Rashevsky, as the Financial Times notes, received the support of all EU countries thanks to a successful trial in 2024, where he proved that the accusations against him were exaggerated. His case became a precedent demonstrating the vulnerability of sanctions decisions based on weak legal grounds.

Karina Rotenberg, who was sanctioned by the EU in March 2022, also managed to have them lifted. Her lawyers convinced European authorities that there was no basis for the restrictions, which was a significant achievement given the rumors about her American citizenship, which she did not publicly confirm. In the US, sanctions also affected the Russian president’s special representative Kirill Dmitriev, but in his case the restrictions were temporarily lifted to obtain a visa, which indicates Washington’s pragmatic approach in certain situations. According to analysts, these examples demonstrate that sanctions imposed without a proper evidence base are subject to revision, especially under the pressure of court decisions and diplomatic efforts.