Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich to face UK sanctions

It has been announced that Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned.

Abramovich, a Russian billionaire oligarch who amassed Kremlin-linked fortunes in the 1990s, will be subject to UK assets freezes, meaning his sale of the football club will be put on hold.

According to Redress, the EU has sanctioned over 500 individuals or entities. The US has sanctioned around 240 individuals or entities. As of this list of 7 individuals sanctioned, the UK is now on 41 individuals – of which 18 are oligarchs.

Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Layla Moran MP said: “The sanctioning of more individuals including Abramovich is well overdue. The Government must now confirm that these individuals’ mansions will be used to house Ukrainian refugees.

“The Foreign Secretary must also urgently assess whether these oligarchs have been able to sell off any of their assets due to the Government’s delay in acting.

“But we also need to go further and faster. There are hundreds of Kremlin-linked oligarchs and following this announcement, we have sanctioned just 18. It’s not good enough. With every day that goes by, Putin’s cronies will be fire-selling their assets and fleeing our jurisdiction.”

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