Russia-Ukraine war: Abramovich spotted in Istanbul peace talks

Image source, Turkish TV

Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich was in Turkey for peace negotiations.

He talked to the Turkish President, who is trying to broker a deal in Istanbul.

Reports surfaced hours earlier that Mr Abramovich and two Ukrainian negotiators had shown symptoms of poisoning.

It is known that Mr. Abramovich spent weeks in a mediation role.

Reports say that the owner of the football club had sore eyes and peeling skin, but recovered.

A Ukrainian presidential official said the two Ukrainians were fine after a Wall Street Journal report said they had been targeted by Russian hardliners.

The report on Tuesday was a part of the information war, according to the Russian presidential spokesman.

Hours before the talks, the Foreign Minister of Ukraine told his colleagues not to eat or drink anything.

The picture was released by the Russian state news agency and shows Mr. Abramovich talking to the Foreign Minister of Turkey.

He was sitting next to Mr Kalin in Turkish TV coverage and listening to a translation. They weren't at the main table of the Russian and Ukrainian delegations.

Ukrainian media said that Mr. Abramovich was a neutral party in the talks.

The spokesman for the Kremlin said he was not an official member of the Russian delegation in Istanbul but had been involved in enabling contacts between the two delegations.

Vadym Prystaiko, the Ukranian ambassador to the UK, was angry about his presence in Istanbul. He told the BBC that he was not a part of the negotiation team.

I don't know if he is buying his way out or if he is really useful.

The Eclipse, a yacht owned by a businessman, has been moored at the Turkish port of Marmaris in recent days.

Image source, Reuters

He put the club up for sale after the UK government imposed sanctions on him and other Russians.

A private jet flew Mr. Abramovich from Tel Aviv to Moscow 11 days after the alleged incident in Kyiv.

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who was attacked with a nerve agent in Siberia, is one of a number of enemies of the Kremlin who have suffered mysterious poisonings. The Kremlin denied being involved.

In 2004, a pro-European presidential candidate in Ukraine was attacked with dioxins and had his face blackened. Russia denied involvement.