Ahead of key peace talks on the ongoing war in Ukraine the former owner of Chelsea FC, Roman Abramovich, has been spotted in a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin
10:35, 14 May 2025Updated 10:35, 14 May 2025
Abramovich
Roman Abramovich re-emerges at Kremlin meeting(Image: Kremlin.ru/e2w)
The former Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich has been spotted in the Kremlin ahead of key peace talks with Ukraine. Previously Abramovich played a key unofficial role in the early days of the war in negotiations attempting to halt the conflict.
This is the first time Abramovich has been seen in a meeting with Russian PresidentVladimir Putin with the two men appearing in a session of the Boards of Trustees of the Bolshoi and the Mariinsky Theatres.
The former club owner refused to answer questions from reporters on whether he was playing any discreet role in talks between Russia and Ukraine.
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is seen prior to the Barclays Premier League match between Chelsea and Leicester City at Stamford Bridge on May 15, 2016
The Russian billionaire refused to answer when questioned by reporters(Image: Getty Images)
When asked by reporters: “Roman, will you take part in the negotiations on Ukraine, with Kyiv?…” and “Would you go to Istanbul?” – where ongoing peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have been taking place – Abramovich refused to answer and walked past.
The Russian billionaire's reappearance at the Kremlin is intriguing due to the role he played in 2022 in previous talks attempting to end the conflict. Ultimately these talks ended in failure with reports claiming he had been poisoned when he suffered red eyes and peeling skin in a mysterious incident.
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During this time he participated in several rounds of talks, including those held in Belarus and Istanbul. While not being an official member of the Russian delegation, Abramovich’s involvement was acknowledged by both sides.
Abramovich
Roman Roman Abramovich has been spotted in a meeting with Putin(Image: UEFA via Getty Images)
Despite Abramovich’s presence in the peace talks the Ukrainian MP, Oleksiy Goncharenko, released a scathing statement on the former club owners involvement.
The statement read: “The interlocutors from the Ukrainian side say that Abramovich is the most adequate there, and is ready to negotiate.
“But the reality is that they are all just ‘tape recorders’ - they record and transmit to Putin.
Abramovich
Abramovich was involved in previous peace talks during the early days of the conflict(Image: Getty Images)
“Therefore, peace depends only on one person - Putin.
“Who will be in the delegation, what people will say - it is absolutely unimportant. Putin decides everything personally.”
At the meeting where Abramovich was seen Putin talked of the 250th anniversary of the world famous Bolshoi Theatre next year and refused to clarify if he would travel to Turkey to participate in ongoing peace talks.
Putin
Putin would not clarify if he would travel to Istanbul to appear at ongoing peace talks(Image: Anadolu via Getty Images)
The Russian President spoke about the 250th anniversary of the world famous Bolshoi Theatre next year and said: “It is one of the most valuable objects of our national heritage, the property of the people of Russia.
“Its anniversary is a holiday for all fans of opera, ballet, and symphonic music. Let's discuss the progress of preparations for the celebration.
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"Are there any problems that need to be solved? Perhaps some other issues need to be discussed.”