GLORY DAYS ARE OVER

Putin Tells Oligarchs to Stop Stashing Cash Overseas

The president told billionaires it was time for patriotism not foreign luxury.

President Vladimir Putin told a gathering of Russia’s top oligarchs that their days of foreign luxury and vast assets hidden overseas were over. After more than a year of his expensive and draining war in Ukraine, Putin said it was time for Russia’s wealthiest men to focus on patriotism, not profits. “A responsible entrepreneur is a real citizen of Russia, of his country, a citizen who understands and acts in its interests,” Putin said, according to Reuters. “He does not hide assets offshore, but registers companies here, in our country, and does not become dependent on foreign authorities.” Since the war began, some of the oligarchs in the room—including Oleg Deripaska—have been sanctioned by the West in any case, but it’s clear that Putin is cracking down on any rival power bases.