has been playing cat and mouse with the British Government for three years, and Downing Street’s patience has begun to run out, just at the moment when .
The Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has signed a license allowing the transfer to that country of 2.85 billion euros, which were held in a United Kingdom account. The Russian billionaire, a friend and ally of Putin, has pledged to allocate that money to humanitarian programs to soften the effects of war, but has so far stunned British authorities with his insistence that the money go to “all victims” (including Russian soldiers and civilians) and with the constant dispute over the true amount of money his foundation retains.
“The countdown has begun for Roman Abramovich to fulfill the commitment he made when Chelsea FC was sold, and transfer those 2.5 billion pounds sterling (2.85 billion euros) to a humanitarian cause in Ukraine,” Starmer warned this Wednesday in his last appearance in the House of Commons before the Christmas holidays. “This Government is prepared to push the case through the courts, so that every last penny goes to those whose lives have been destroyed by Putin’s illegal war,” said the prime minister.
due to its links with Vladimir Putin’s regime and its collusion with attacks on the territorial integrity of Ukraine, placed the sports entity on assisted breathing. Until Downing Street allowed the sale of the club, with the condition that neither Abramovich nor anyone related to the magnate could benefit from the sale. In the end, it was a consortium of American investors led by Todd Boehly, businessman and investor, and Clearlake Capital, who took over the club. The amount disbursed was retained in a British bank account.
The Starmer Government thus gives the Russian oligarch one last opportunity to propose a destination for that fortune that serves to benefit the victims of Ukraine. Sources related to the negotiation have assured the newspaper Financial Times (FT) that Abramovich has been given 90 days to respond.
“It is unacceptable that more than £2.5 billion owed to the people of Ukraine remains frozen in a UK bank account. The time has come for Roman Abramovich to pay,” Economy Minister Rachel Reeves joined Stamer’s warnings. However, legally that money still belongs to the Russian oligarch, even though it is frozen and under the control of the British Government.
The pressure on Abramovich coincides with the European summit being held in Brussels this Thursday and Friday. At that meeting, the EU will debate a decision of historic significance regarding the sanctions exercised until now against Russia, which would consist of the release of more than 92 billion euros, part of the funds frozen to Moscow, to convert them into “reconstruction loans” for a country devastated by war and on the edge of its survival.
Downing Street has been negotiating for three years with Abramovich, his lawyers and his company, Fordstam Ltd, through which he owned Chelsea FC. However, according to the latest accounts delivered by the company in June 2022 to the Public Commercial Registry of the United Kingdom (Companies House), cited by the FT, the money available would be notably less than the 2.5 billion pounds claimed by the British Government.
