In the days before Russia invaded Ukraine on the 24th February 2022, the British government announced sanctions against some Russian banks and Putin-friendly oligarchs with links to London. According to the campaign group 'Transparency International', an estimated £1.5bn of UK property has been spent with suspect funds from Russia, via the City of London, the UK capital's financial district as well as undiusclosed sums of Russian donations to Boris Johnson's Conservative party.