Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross denied any wrong doing. He said that the report that he didn’t mention ties to a Russian firm is false.
The accusation was found in documents that were leaked. The documents called “Paradise Papers” revealed off-shore tax havens cash holdings.
The names of many rich and powerful people are found in the documents. The papers showed a report that Ross failed to disclose his involvement with Navigator Holdings.
Navigator Holdings had a business relationship with SIBUR. SIBUR is a Russian owned company.
Gennady Timchenko who is a Russian billionaire is part owner of SIBUR. He is considered part of Putin’s inner circle.
SIBUR
Timchenko had been barred from the US by Treasury Department. Leonid Mikhelson is also owner of SIBUR.
Mikhelson was also part of Putin’s circle. He too has also been banned by US Treasury.
Ross said “a company not under sanction is just like any other company, period. It was a normal commercial relationship and one that I had nothing to do with the creation of, and do not know the shareholders who were apparently sanctioned at some later point in time.”
The recent declaration of Manafort’s business deals has created a stir. This might have Ross worried as any relations to Russia could raise flags.
