Updated

EU member states agreed to extend Russia sanctions for three years while removing billionaires Mikhail Fridman and Alisher Usmanov from the list, a move that surprised Fridman himself and drew sharp criticism from Ukraine, Latvia and anti-corruption activists. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called the decision 'shameful,' Zelensky termed it 'self-defeating,' and Latvia said it was the only EU country to oppose the move, vowing to impose its own national sanctions on the two men. Anti-Corruption Foundation figure Leonid Volkov also criticized the decision. The fallout extended further: Azerbaijan's president pardoned French businessman Martin Ryan after France pushed for Usmanov's removal from the list, and an EU court separately overturned (but did not overturn the listing itself of) sanctions decisions against another Russian, Oleg Tkach. Zelensky also had a reportedly tense meeting with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in New York over Ukraine's financial and defence support amid the sanctions dispute.