BBC said pop star Miley Cyrus might need to cancel the Finnish leg of her wildly successful "Bangerz" international tour. It has been said that the venue which will be hosting her concert in Finland is owned by Gennady Timchenko and brothers Arkady and Boris Rotenberg, who all are part of Russian President Vladimir Putin's inner circle and appeared on the US sanctions list. Aside from Cyrus, musicians who will need to cancel their planned concerts at the venue are crooner Justin Timberlake, British singer Robbie Williams, popular rock band Aerosmith, Elton John and Peter Gabriel.
The three's inclusion in the official sanctions list are largely because of their close connection with Putin, BBC said. Timchenko, whose estimated net worth according to Forbes was at $15.3 billion or £9.2 billion, co-founded Russian oil trader Gunvor. Arkady and Boris Rotenberg, who are childhood friends of the Russian president, are the billionaire co-owners of SMP Bank. The three came to own the Helsinki Hartwall Arena when their events management company Arena Events Oy acquired the venue last year aside from purchasing a minority share in Jokerit, a local hockey club. The arena is currently managed by Rotenberg's son Roman.
According to the US sanctions, American citizens or businesses are prohibited from providing any of the 27 individuals in the list economic resources, which would mean that Cyrus and other US performers are not allowed to do businesses with them. On the other hand, BBC said that the US ticket promoter of the concerts in question, Live Nation, could apply to the US Office of Foreign Assets Control for a license to authorize their transaction with Helsinki Hartwall Arena. Live Nation had said that it was reviewing its portfolio and will ensure that it will comply with what the US sanctions call for.
Partner Tom Stocker at law firm Pinsent Mason said, "Ofac will need to provide a license to authorize the transaction and will have to take into account that the show forms part of a pre-existing agreement. But it has quite a wide discretion to grant licences. If this was Europe then a licence would most likely not be granted."
