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UK government to take ‘further steps’ against Abramovich for failing to hand over money from Chelsea

LONDON (AP) — The British government said Tuesday it will take “further steps” to ensure Roman Abramovich releases the 2.5 billion pounds (then $3.2 billion) he pledged to donate from the sale of Premier League soccer giant Chelsea in 2022.

Abramovich was forced to sell Chelsea after his native Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine, and the London club was bought by a consortium led by American investors Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital for what, at the time, was the highest price ever paid for a sports team.

Abramovich pledged to give the proceeds from the sale to victims of Russia’s war in Ukraine but the funds remain frozen amid a dispute between him and the British government, which says he has objected to plans for the money be spent exclusively in Ukraine.

Britain’s Press Association reported Tuesday that the government is preparing to take legal action against Abramovich after he missed a deadline of March 17 to hand over the money.

“We gave Roman Abramovich his last chance to do the right thing,” the government said. “Once again, he has failed to make the donation he committed to.

“We will now take further steps to ensure that the promise he made at the time of the Chelsea sale is kept.”

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Ukraine’s drone strikes set a gloomy tone for Putin’s economic showcase

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — A massive black cloud rising above the St. Petersburg skyline from a Ukrainian drone strike set a gloomy tone for the opening of President Vladimir Putin's annual showcase of Russia's economic achievements. With Putin set to arrive Thursday in his hometown that is hosting the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, the Ukrainian attack a day earlier that set an oil terminal ablaze was another embarrassing blow to his efforts to minimize the impact of the 4-year-old conflict and cast it as a distant event with no effect on Russian daily life. The attack, which also targeted a naval base near Russia's second-largest city on the Gulf of Finland, underlined Ukraine’s growing capability to hit deep inside its neighbor and demonstrated that even the heavily protected city where Putin was born is increasingly vulnerable. Scores of flights were delayed or diverted at St. Petersburg’s airport and authorities cut cellphone internet service to try to prevent drone attacks.
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