Sanctioned oligarch says he's forced to eat food at home instead of going to restaurants

A sanctioned Russian oligarch has called for the UK authorities to give him an allowance so he can go out to eat.

Ukrainian-born Mikhail Fridman, who is reportedly worth £11.9 billion, now says he has to eat at his Athlone House home in north London due to sanctions on his wealth.

“The authorities in the UK should give me a certain amount so I can go in a taxi and buy food, but it will be a very limited amount in relation to the cost of living in London,” he told El Pais.

“I can’t even pay in a restaurant. I have to eat at home and I am practically under house arrest.”

A general view of the exterior of Athlone House, a property owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)

The Alfa Bank founder has also spoken out against sanctions.

He said: “I’ve been in London for eight years, I’ve invested billions of dollars in Britain and other European countries and the answer to this is that they confiscate everything and throw me out.

“The people who have been sanctioned will have to return to Russia, where they will have no choice but to be absolutely loyal, and where they will continue to work, because they are energetic, brilliant and talented people, and they will start businesses and create jobs.”

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After being sanctioned by the EU on February 28th and the UK on March 15th, he must apply for a license to spend money and must live off an allowance of £2,500, according toBloomberg.

Fridman also spoke out against sanctions during an interview with Bloomberg, where he claimed that sanctions against oligarchs show that Europe doesn’t understand how Russian power works.

He said: “If the people who are in charge in the EU believe that because of sanctions, I could approach Mr. Putin and tell him to stop the war, and it will work, then I’m afraid we’re all in big trouble.

“That means those who are making this decision understand nothing about how Russia works. And that’s dangerous for the future.”

He has previously spoken out against the war.

He wrote a letter, which was later made public, to staff at his investment firm LetterOne condemning the war. Fridman and fellow oligarch Petr Aven gave up their roles at the firm when they were slapped with sanctions.

In the letter, he wrote that he doesn’t typically make political statements, but said that he wants “the bloodshed to end”, stating that the war will “cost lives and damage two nations who have been brothers for hundreds of years.”

Fridman previously whined about how he would have to clean his own home as he would no longer be able to afford a cleaner.

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