The Kremlin announced that the Russian billionaire, Roman Abramovich, is mediating in the Russian-Ukrainian talks that began on Tuesday in Istanbul, denying press reports that he may have been poisoned.
“Abramovich plays a role in restoring contacts between the Russian and Ukrainian parties,” Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said during a press conference, reported by AFP.
“He is in Istanbul,” he added, although he is not an official member of the Russian delegation.
On the other hand, Peskov denied information from the American newspaper “The Wall Street Journal”, which indicated that Abramovich and two Ukrainian negotiators suffered from symptoms that lead to the belief that poisoning may occur after an earlier round of talks in Belarus.
“This is part of the media war” against Russia, he said, adding that “this information, of course, does not correspond to reality.”
Peskov added that Abramovich “is engaged in ensuring certain contacts between Russia and Ukraine, but he is not an official member of the Russian delegation, and both sides have agreed to his participation in the contacts.”
In addition, Al-Hurra correspondent in Turkey confirmed that Abramovich, owner of Chelsea Football Club, was seen in the hall during the meetings of the Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul, which began this morning.
It quoted Turkish media as saying that Turkish presidential spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, coordinated a meeting between Abramovich and the Ukrainians at the hotel where the Ukrainian delegation was staying in Istanbul.