Britain said on Monday it would impose sanctions on companies and people with the closest links to the Kremlin if Russia takes action against Ukraine, drawing a warning from Moscow that it would re-spond if its businesses were “attacked”.Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, London has become the pre-eminent global centre for a vast outflow of money from former Soviet republics.
Opponents of President Vladimir Putin, who has massed troops near Ukraine, have repeatedly called on the West to get tough on Russian money, though oligarchs and Russian officials continue to flaunt their wealth at Europe’s most luxurious destinations.—Agencies
