Finland Times

The Russian bank, whose majority shareholder is the Bank of Russia, the central bank of the Russian Federation, is currently under sanctions imposed by the European Union and the United States.

As a result, the bank has been rejected access to the international markets with the exception of funding. However, the sanctions do not apply to matters relating to the leadership of the bank, said Helsingin Sanomat.

Esko Aho told the daily the CEO of Sberbank Herman Gref had asked him to join the board of directors about one month ago. He accepted the request after careful consideration.

The former prime minister said the sanctions were not an obstacle to his participation in the governance of the bank, adding that the board had two other foreigners, one of whom was Alessandro Profumo, former chairman of the board of the Italian bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena.

"While sanctions are in force, Finland and Russia have a lot of interaction, which will continue as normal," Aho was quoted as saying.

He predicted his position in the Russia's largest bank could also be beneficial for Finnish companies.

Incumbent Prime Minister Juha Sipila, who is attending an EU summit in Brussels, told Helsingin Sanomat that the former prime minister's nomination did not pose any problem.

"Aho said that he has been nominated, it was known in advance. This is purely his personal affair. This is not a matter between the governments," Sipila was cited as saying.

Born in 1954, Esko Aho is a member of the Centre Party. He was the prime minister of Finland from 1991 to 1995.