Sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich has traveled to Kyiv to try to restart peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, according to a report — just days after another $7 billion worth of his assets were frozen.
Abramovich huddled with Ukrainian government representatives to try to revive talks that ground to a halt after the Russian retreat from Kyiv revealed evidence of atrocities against civilians, Bloomberg News reported Saturday.
The Russian billionaire — whose ties to Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, go back to the 1990s — began acting as an informal go-between in the war in late February, attending a round of face-to-face meetings in Istanbul, Turkey, that ended March 29.
But since then, there have been few hopeful signs of a peaceful end to the crisis that began when Putin’s forces invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24 — and international pressure on Abramovich and other members of the Russian elite has only increased.
The Channel Island of Jersey, a well-known tax haven with a reputation for attracting foreign investors, last week became one of the latest entities to target the oligarch’s wealth, freezing $7 billion in assets.
Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich (left) previously attended peace talks in Istanbul, Turkey on March 29, 2022. Cem Ozdel/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesThe French government also seized 12 residences owned by the billionaire in recent days, including a $120 million historic home on the ritzy French Riviera that housed King Edward VIII after he abdicated the British throne to marry divorcée Wallis Simpson in 1936.
Abramovich’s five-vessel fleet of superyachts — including the $600 million Solaris and the $700 million Eclipse — have been dodging European ports for weeks to keep the ships out of the authorities’ hands, and the former oil baron has gone begging to Hollywood and power-broker pals for help paying his bills, The Post reported.
Approximately $7 billion worth of Roman Abramovich’s assets were frozen at the Channel Island of Jersey. Cem Ozdel/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesA rep for Abramovich told Bloomberg News that the oligarch was not in Kyiv but declined further comment.






