Khodorkovsky: Oil ban would deal Putin ‘very serious blow’

Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who was once Russia’s wealthiest man and is now President Putin’s most prominent critic in exile, has told the BBC a Western oil and gas embargo would deal the president “a very serious blow”.

Speaking to Hardtalk’s Stephen Sackur the dissident businessman said such a measure would cause Mr Putin “to lose over half his revenue” and questioned whether Moscow could continue to wage war in Ukraine after such an impact on the federal budget.

Mr Khodorkovsky was once CEO of Russian oil giant Yukos before being jailed for almost a decade on charges of fraud and tax evasion which, he says, were politically motivated.

Watch the full interview on Friday 22 April 2022 on BBC World News or watch again on BBC iPlayer (UK only)