The UK authorities have threatened to sue former Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich to ensure that the proceeds from the club’s sale go to Ukraine.
Following Russia’s big invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Mr. Abramovich obtained approval to freeze the £2. Five billion in proceeds in a UK financial institution account. The UK government desires the cash to be used for Ukrainian humanitarian aid; however, Mr. Abramovich has stated he desires it to go to “all sufferers of the conflict in Ukraine.”
“While the door for negotiations will remain open,” Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Chancellor Rachel Reeves said in a joint declaration, “we’re organized to pursue this via the courts if required.”
They stated they wanted “to ensure people suffering in Ukraine can gain from these proceeds as quickly as feasible”.
They added: “The government is determined to look at the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club to attain humanitarian causes in Ukraine, following Russia’s illegal full-scale invasion.
“The truth that it has no longer been feasible to attain agreement in this with Mr. Abramovich to this point frustrates us greatly.” The delay in releasing the price range centres on a war of words between the UK government and its legal professionals.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Mr. Abramovich, a Russian billionaire who made his fortune in oil and fuel, became granted a special license to sell Chelsea provided he may want to show that he could not enjoy the sale. He is said to have strong ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, something he has denied.
He can not access the £2.5bn sale proceeds under UK sanctions; however, the cash nevertheless legally belongs to him.
He stated that the proceeds from the sale might be donated to a foundation “for the gain of all sufferers of the struggle in Ukraine,” which could encompass the ones in Russia, when he announced his decision to sell the club. The UK government has driven again and argued that the finances must be best spent on humanitarian efforts inner Ukraine.
Last year, a House of Lords committee said that Mr. Abramovich’s promise to use the cash to help Ukraine turned into “incomprehensible” and that the belongings have been frozen. “This impasse displays badly on both Mr Abramovich and the authorities, which need to have driven for a greater binding dedication,” the document stated.
Companies
Roman Abramovich