Cabinet of Ministers found no grounds to introduce sanctions against Portnov

The Cabinet of Ministers has found no grounds to introduce sanctions against the former Presidential Administration head Andriy Portnov, as stated in Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal's response to the petition by Hromadske journalist Yaroslava Volvach.

Shmyhal cited the Constitution and the Law of Ukraine “On Sanctions”, describing the procedure for imposing sanctions and explaining who should impose them.

“Having processed the aforementioned instruction, the Ministry of Economy concluded that the petition did not contain information that can be considered as grounds for imposing sanctions according to the Law. The Law does not list a decision by the United States of America to impose sanctions as a basis for imposing sanctions,” Shmyhal noted.

Andriy Portnov. Photo by liga.net

He also stressed that “the petition contains no information pointing to 'terrorist activities' on the part of A. V. Portnov as defined in Article 1 of the Law of Ukraine 'On Combating Terrorism', which could be considered as grounds for applying sanctions in accordance with the Law”.

In his response, the Prime Minister refers to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the National Police, the Bureau of Economic Security, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau, and the Security Service of Ukraine. These state bodies of the Ministry of Economy reported that currently no information suggests that there are grounds for applying sanctions against Portnov.

“At the same time, as per the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, any interested person who possesses facts that may indicate that a criminal offense has been committed has the right to contact law enforcement agencies with a corresponding statement”, Shmyhal concluded.

Previously

On December 26, 2024, the Media Movement expressed concern with Ukrainian courts repeatedly granting Portnov’s claims against the media and civil society organizations. This is happening despite the considerable reasons to view his activities critically. In view of this.

The Media Movement supported Yaroslava Volvach and called on the President of Ukraine to submit proposals for the National Security and Defense Council to consider introducing sanctions against Andriy Portnov in compliance with the Law of Ukraine "On Sanctions".

The Media Movement also addressed the Chairman of the Supreme Court of Ukraine and the High Council of Justice with an appeal to ensure transparency and objectivity in considering cases related to public figures such as Andriy Portnov. They asked that judicial decisions in these cases be reviewed for their compliance with the standards of justice and judicial ethics.

On December 28, 2024, Andriy Portnov, through his representative Karina Mikityan, appealed to the government with a demand to take the petition down. As Portnov's representative explained, posting the petition about him violated Portnov's rights and freedoms, and therefore was in violation of the law.

On January 8, Andriy Portnov sent an address to multiple media outlets and civil society organizations saying that he considered the Media Movement’s call to introduce sanctions against him "ratting" motivated by vengefulness and hostility.