Kremlin spokesman Peskov condemns ‘traitors’ who try to shed European sanctions ‘for 12 pieces of silver.’ (Yes, he did say ‘12,’ not ‘30.’)

Russian entrepreneurs who try to shed Western sanctions by making public statements condemning the invasion of Ukraine are “traitors,” said the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

The Russian news outlet Mayak posted Peskov’s comments about the way different members of the Russian business community are dealing with European sanctions.

“We can understand neither the logic of the sanctions themselves, nor the logic of how they’re removed. Possibly, no one in Europe itself can explain this logic either,” Peskov said, adding that the Kremlin is aware of

entrepreneurs who descend to anti-Russian positions, trying to get sanctions against them lifted for 12 pieces of silver. They’re traitors. Other entrepreneurs steadily defend their interests in court. This is every entrepreneur’s right, and we respect it.

Peskov also said that sanctioning Russian business executives, confiscating their private property, and freezing their assets is contrary to international legal norms.

On September 13, the E.U. chose not to renew personal sanctions against four Russians: billionaire investment magnate Farkhad Akhmedov, oil tycoon Grigory Berezkin, former Ozon CEO Alexander Shulgin, and Georgy Shuvayev — a colonel of the Russian armed forces removed from the sanctions list after being killed in Ukraine last January.