It could take months of legal work before the the U.K. is ready to even consider sanctioning Roman Abramovich and some other wealthy Russians, because government lawyers have still to lay the foundations of a watertight case against them, a person familiar with the matter said.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson is under mounting pressure from the opposition Labour Party to sanction Abramovich, a billionaire who made his fortune in Russia and owns London’s Chelsea Football Club.
The U.K. has now sanctioned more than 100 Russian individuals and entities in response to the invasion of Ukraine, including at least 11 wealthy individuals, after adding metals tycoon Alisher Usmanov and Igor Shuvalov, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s former deputy prime minister to the list Thursday.