Deripaska Pessimistic on Productive Ukraine Peace Discussions at Davos Summit

Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska stated on Sunday that there is no chance of peace in Ukraine until at least May 2025 and that a productive dialogue about resolving the conflict at Davos will be impossible since a Russian delegation will not be present.

In February 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin dispatched thousands of troops into Ukraine, striking first in the West-Moscow conflict since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.
The world’s elite will be prioritizing talks to end the wars in Gaza and Ukraine when they attend the World Economic Forum next week, which will be attended by French President Emmanuel Macron, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and other important Middle East leaders.

In a post on the Telegram app, Deripaska stated, “Unfortunately, a constructive talk about the situation in Ukraine will not happen—there will be no Russian delegation.“

“Aim for peace no sooner than May 25th,” Deripaska declared.
After graduating from Moscow University with a degree in physics, Deripaska entered the metals trading business and amassed wealth by purchasing shares in aluminum production companies.

In 2000, he established RUSAL (RUAL.MM) and opened a new tab, which brought the crown jewels of the Soviet aluminum industry together under one holding. With a net worth of $2.5 billion, he was listed as Russia’s 54th richest man by the Russian edition of Forbes last year.

As Russian soldiers are ordered off Ukrainian territory and as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy declares all talks with Russia to be illegal, Ukraine says it will not stop until these things happen.
Since Zelenskiy’s “peace formula” seeks to achieve peace without Russian involvement, Russia, which holds slightly less than a fifth of Ukrainian territory, has rejected it as nonsensical.

Zelenskiy’s ten-point peace plan asks for the restoration of Ukraine’s state borders with Russia, the departure of Russian forces, and the end of hostilities.

Putin characterizes the conflict in Ukraine as a component of a larger worldwide conflict with the West, which he claims seeks to divide Russia and appropriate its resources. The West disputes its desire to obliterate Russia.

Deripaska has been sanctioned by Britain since the invasion of Ukraine on February 24 due to his purported connections to Putin. He has filed a lawsuit to overturn the penalties.
Guy Faulconbridge reported, and Christina Fincher edited.

WHO IS Deripaska

Oleg Deripaska, a Russian billionaire and oligarch, was born on January 2, 1968, in Dzerzhinsk, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Soviet Russia. His rise to wealth is rooted in the privatization of state-owned assets following the Soviet Union’s collapse.

Business Ventures: Boldly venturing into entrepreneurship, Deripaska founded Basic Element, a leading Russian industrial group, and Volnoe Delo, the nation’s largest charitable foundation. His leadership extended to En+ Group, a Russian energy company, and United Company Rusal, the world’s second-largest aluminum company. However, he stepped down from both roles in 2018.

Aluminium Wars and Business Triumphs: Deripaska earned recognition as a victor in the tumultuous “aluminium wars” of 1990s Russia. These conflicts, marked by violence, centered around the acquisition of state-owned assets. In 2000, he founded Rusal, a collaboration between Sibirsky Aluminium and Roman Abramovich’s Millhouse Capital. The subsequent merger with SUAL Group and Glencore International AG in 2007 formed UC Rusal, with Deripaska as chairman.

Financial Challenges: Despite once being Russia’s wealthiest individual, Deripaska faced significant financial setbacks during the 2007–08 financial crisis. As of June 2022, Forbes estimated his wealth at $3.2 billion, ranking him as the 920th richest person globally.

International Sanctions and Citizenship: Deripaska’s involvement in geopolitical events attracted international attention. In 2018, he faced U.S. sanctions related to Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea. Additionally, the British government imposed sanctions on him and six other oligarchs in response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, involving asset freezes and travel bans.

Citizenship Choices: In an intriguing move, Deripaska obtained Cypriot citizenship in 2017, thereby acquiring EU citizenship.

This overview encapsulates Oleg Deripaska’s journey, from his entrepreneurial triumphs to the complexities of international sanctions and citizenship choices.

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