The U.Okay. has threatened authorized motion in opposition to Russian businessman Roman Abramovich over 2.5 billion kilos ($3.4 billion) in frozen proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club, which he supposed to donate to victims of the warfare in Ukraine.
Abramovich was sanctioned by the U.Okay. in 2022 as a part of a broader crackdown on Russian oligarchs following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, prompting a swift sale of the Premier League membership and the freezing of the funds.
The U.Okay. insists the cash must be used completely in Ukraine, aligning with a wider European push to make Russia pay for the devastation it induced. Abramovich, nonetheless, is pushing for higher flexibility, aiming to distribute the funds to all victims of the warfare, not simply these in Ukraine.
In a uncommon joint assertion, U.Okay. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves and Foreign Secretary David Lammy mentioned Tuesday the federal government was ready to accentuate efforts to safe the funds.
“The government is determined to see the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club reach humanitarian causes in Ukraine, following Russia’s illegal full-scale invasion. We are deeply frustrated that it has not been possible to reach an agreement on this with Mr. Abramovich so far,” they mentioned.
They added that the door for negotiations would stay open however that they have been “fully prepared to pursue this through the courts if required.”
A lawyer for Abramovich within the U.Okay. didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Reuters reported in March that the U.Okay. was contemplating authorized motion over the difficulty.
Under Abramovich, Chelsea loved essentially the most profitable interval in its historical past earlier than the membership was bought in May 2022 to a consortium led by U.S. investor Todd Boehly and personal fairness agency Clearlake Capital.
Proceeds from the sale are frozen in a U.Okay. checking account and can’t be moved or used with out a license from the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation, the company within the Treasury that enforces sanctions.
Source: www.dailysabah.com