EU ambassadors are nearing a deal to break the deadlock over France’s request to delist Russian-Uzbek billionaire Alisher Usmanov from the sanctions list as part of a package that could see two French nationals released from prison in Azerbaijan.

The Irish presidency, which runs the EU Council for six months under the bloc’s rotating presidency system, proposed a compromise to delist Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman, another Russian businessman, in exchange for an unprecedented 36-month renewal of the sanctions regime to avoid a similar impasse in future, diplomats told Euronews.

Ambassadors met on Monday morning but failed to strike a deal. They…

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