Roman Abramovich
Roman Abramovich

Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned by the UK government as part of attempts to crackdown on wealthy Russians with assets in the country.

The Chelsea Football Club owner is one of seven more Russian oligarchs who have had sanctions placed on them by ministers on Thursday.

Last week, Mr Abramovich announced that he intends to sell Chelsea after almost 20 years of ownership, with net proceeds from the sale to be donated to “all victims of the war in Ukraine”.

In a statement, he said the decision is “in the best interest of the club” amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The sanctions will come into force before the sale of the football club, estimated to be worth around £3bn, is able to take place.Advertisement

Mr Abramovich will have his assets frozen under the move and will also face a prohibition on transactions with UK individuals and businesses and a travel ban.

Boris Johnson said: “There can be no safe havens for those who have supported Putin’s vicious assault on Ukraine.

“Today’s sanctions are the latest step in the UK’s unwavering support for the Ukrainian people. We will be ruthless in pursuing those who enable the killing of civilians, destruction of hospitals and illegal occupation of sovereign allies.”

The other six Russian oligarchs are:

• Oleg Deripaska, who has stakes in En+ Group

• Igor Sechin, chief executive of Rosneft

• Andrey Kostin, chairman of VTB bank

• Alexei Miller, CEO of energy company Gazprom

• Nikolai Tokarev, president of the Russia state-owned pipeline company Transneft

• Dmitri Lebedev, chairman of the Board of Directors of Bank Rossiya

The government has now sanctioned over 200 individuals and entities.

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