By Muvija M and Catarina Demony
LONDON, Dec 17 (Reuters) – The United Kingdom on Wednesday gave Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich one last chance to hand over £2.5 billion ($3.33 billion) to Ukraine from the sale of Chelsea or face possible legal action.
The United Kingdom sanctioned Abramovich after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, triggering a hasty sale of the Premier League club and the freezing of its income.
Britain wants the funds to go only to humanitarian causes in Ukraine, in line with broader European pressure for Moscow to foot the bill for the deaths and destruction caused by its invasion.
Reuters could not immediately contact representatives for Abramovich for a response to the government’s statement.
Abramovich has already asked for more flexibility and has said he wants the money to go to all victims. If it does not release the funds quickly, the Government said in a statement that it is willing to take it to court if necessary.
“It is unacceptable that more than £2.5 billion of money owed to the Ukrainian people is allowed to remain frozen in a UK bank account,” Finance Minister Rachel Reeves said in the statement.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain would issue permission to release the funds. This would allow the money to be transferred to a new humanitarian foundation.
European Union leaders are scheduled to review proposals on Thursday to use revenue from frozen Russian sovereign assets to support Ukraine’s huge budget and defense needs, something Moscow fiercely opposes.
Under Abramovich, Chelsea enjoyed the most successful run in its history before the club was sold to a consortium led by American investor Todd Boehly and venture capital firm Clearlake Capital in May 2022.
(1 dollar = 0.7500 pounds)
(Reporting by Muvija M and Catarina Demony; Additional reporting by Alistair Smout. Editing in Spanish by Javier Leira)
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