Russians with Same Names as Other Russians Sanctioned by the West Suffering as a Result

Paul Goble
    Staunton, Dec. 18 – While many of those Russian officials Western countries have imposed sanctions on have learned how to get around them, these sanctions have hit and often hit hard are Russians who happen to have the same name as those who have been sanctioned but often are treated as if they are the same individual.
    The Holod news agency has spoken with about ten of these people as well as to lawyers who have worked with this problem and recounts both the problems such Russians have in sending or receiving money and provides advice on the steps they need to take in order to avoid difficulties (holod.media/2024/12/18/ne-ta-mariia-zaharova/).
    The agency points out that many of these problems might be avoided if it were not for the fact that the governments imposing sanctions often provide only limited information about those they wish to sanction, such as first and last name, sex and citizenship, but do not specify the position the individual they wish to punish occupies.
    As a result, people who share these names, gender and citizenship with the targets of sanctions often become collateral damage and face difficulties that often delay their movement of money around. But Russian lawyer Yevgeny Smirnov says there are four steps such people can take to minimize the problems.
    First, those with the same name as someone sanctions can collect documents proving they are someone else. Second, they can appeal to the government or agency issuing the sanctions for a declaration on that account. Third, they can seek redress from the banking authorities of the country in which they live. And fourth, if all else fails, they can seek legal help.
    But Smirnov warns that such people are likely to continue to face problems even if they do everything right, at least until those issuing the sanctions are more precise in defining who it is they wish to target.