Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich suffered symptoms of poisoning after peace talks in Kyiv. It is reported that he was affected along with Ukrainian peace negotiators after talks in Kyiv.
Supposedly the group suffered red eyes and tearing and peeling of their skin. The BBC is now reporting that Mr Abramovich's spokesperson has confirmed the reports.
The Wall Street Journal claims the symptoms arose after peace talks in the Ukrainian capital, where at least two senior members of the group developed painful symptoms mirroring the effects of poisoning. Moscow hard-liners who want to sabotage the talks to end the war are being blamed.
Abramovich and the Ukrainian negotiators' lives are not at risk and their condition has improved. President Volodymyr Zelensky also met with Abramovich but is said not to have been affected, reports The Mirror.
It comes after reports Abramovich gave close friend Putin a handwritten note from Ukraine's president Zelensky, prompting a savage reply from the Russian leader. After relaying a message to Putin about potential terms of a peace agreement, Putin reportedly told Abramovich 'tell him I will thrash them'.
Last week, the Kremlin has confirmed outgoing Chelsea owner was involved in early peace talks following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, reports the Mail Online. The UK government has frozen Abramovich's assets in the country due to his previous ties with Russian leader Vladimir Putin amid the war in Ukraine.
The club are now operating under a special license that does prevents them negotiating new contracts with their players. The war in Ukraine led to heightened scrutiny of Russians living in the United Kingdom on so-called 'Golden Visas'.
Abramovich was one such oligarch with assets worth billions in the UK, so claims he was playing a part in initial peace negotiations were met with surprise. Those reports were not backed up by Russian government officials at the time but a Kremlin spokesperson has now confirmed the 55-year-old was involved.
"He did take part at the initial stage," Dmitry Peskov, Putin's press secretary, said of Abramovich on Thursday. "Now the negotiations are between the two teams, the Russians and Ukrainians."
Abramovich's mother, Irina, was born in Ukraine and his daughter, Sofia, has posted on social media to declare it is only Putin who "wants a war with Ukraine".
A spokesperson for the Chelsea owner - who bought the club in 2003 and is now selling up - released a statement four days after Putin's invasion which said: "I can confirm that Roman Abramovich was contacted by the Ukrainian side for support in achieving a peaceful resolution, and that he has been trying to help ever since.
"Considering what is at stake, we would ask for your understanding as to why we have not commented on neither the situation as such nor his involvement. Thank you."
Abramovich's role in the early peace talks was also confirmed by Ukrainian film director and producer Alexander Rodnyansky, who said: "I can confirm that the Ukrainian side have been trying to find someone in Russia willing to help them in finding a peaceful resolution They are connected to Roman Abramovich through the Jewish community and reached out to him for help. Roman Abramovich has been trying to mobilise support for a peaceful resolution ever since."
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