Correspondent in London
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On March 2, just six days after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Roman Abramovich confirmed in a statement that it had put Chelsea up for sale. The Russian tycoon assured that the decision was made with the “best interest” of the team, its fans, employees and sponsors in mind. The operation, however, has been paralyzed after the British government reported Thursday that the 55-year-old billionaire is on the list of sanctioned oligarchs as part of the “UK effort to isolate Putin and those around him.” ». Despite the sanctions, Boris Johnson’s executive could issue a license allowing the sale as long as Abramovich can show that he will not personally benefit from the transaction.
She was the minister of Exteriores, Liz Truss, who announced a complete asset freeze and travel ban on seven of Russia’s wealthiest and most influential oligarchs, “whose business empires, wealth and connections are closely associated with the Kremlin.” In addition to Abramovich, the list of those sanctioned is completed by Oleg Deripaska, with participation in the En+ Group; Igor Sechin, CEO of Rosneft; Andrey Kostin, president of the VTB bank; Alexei Miller, CEO of the Gazprom energy company; Nikolai Tokarev, president of the Russian state oil pipeline company Transneft, and Dmitri Lebedev, chairman of the board of directors of Bank Rossiya. There are already 18 Russian oligarchs sanctioned by London.
“These oligarchs, who have a collective net worth of around £15bn, will have their assets frozen in the United Kingdomthey will be prohibited from traveling here and no citizen or company in the United Kingdom will be able to do business with them, “said sources from the ministry, who assure that the tycoon’s assets are more than nine billion pounds, and in addition to still being the owner of Chelsea FC, has stakes in the steel giant Evraz, which could be supplying material to the Russian army, and in the Norilsk Nickel miner.
“Today’s sanctions show once again that oligarchs and kleptocrats have no place in our economy or in our society. With their close ties to Putin, they are complicit in his aggression,” the minister declared. Boris Johnson was also blunt in stating that “there can be no safe havens for those who have supported Putin’s ferocious attack on Ukraine” and added that “today’s sanctions are the latest step in the unwavering support of the United Kingdom to the Ukrainian people.
Abramovich has always denied having ties to the regime of the Russian president Vladimir Putin but the British executive defends that he has maintained a “close relationship for decades” with him and that he has benefited from tax exemptions for his companies, as well as favorable rates on the purchase and sale of shares to and from the state.
As a consequence of these sanctions, the sponsor of the shirt of the Chelsea, telecoms brand Three, has suspended its £40m deal, a move that could set off a chain of deals with other brands including Nike, Hyundai and Hublot watches, and put the club’s future in doubt. Johnson’s government has issued a special permit for the team to play and for staff to receive their salaries, but he is prohibited from selling any more tickets and his store has already been closed.
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