Photo: Irina Buzhor
The UK government has announced its readiness to sue Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich to unlock £2.5 billion in proceeds from the sale of Chelsea football club, which are still frozen. This was reported by The Guardian.
In a joint statement, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves and Foreign Secretary David Lammy said that London intends to “step up efforts” to transfer these funds to humanitarian aid to Ukraine, as Abramovich publicly promised in 2022.
“We are fully prepared to resolve the situation through the courts, if necessary, so that Ukrainians affected by the war receive these funds as soon as possible,” the ministers said.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Abramovich announced the sale of the club and said that all the money would be donated to a fund to help war victims. At the same time, the British government imposed sanctions on the oligarch, making it impossible for the money to be used without hindrance. The proceeds remain frozen without a valid government licence to use them.
