What happened? According to what the "Wall Street Journal" reveals, both Abramovich and Ukrainian negotiators in talks with Russia showed symptoms of poisoning days before, in a case that - whether verified or not - seems to be straight out of the darkest of spy stories.
All of this, the WSJ claims, occurred after the Russian oligarch met with Ukrainian negotiators, in Kiev, earlier in March, specifically earlier this month.
- "Abramovich lost his vision for several hours." Scientists see chemical weapons poisoning
- Abramovich's spokesman: We confirm he was poisoned
Abramovich's spokesman confirms poisoning
In fact, the WSJ's claims were backed up by a spokesman for Roman Abramovich, who essentially confirmed the Russian oligarch's poisoning.
Specifically, according to the BBC, Abramovich's spokesman confirmed that he was poisoned after meeting with Ukrainian negotiators, but did not specify who else was victimized or who was behind the "attack."
Russians who wanted to sabotage the attack behind the poisoning?
A report cited by the BBC said the alleged poisoning was orchestrated by Russian hardliners who wanted to sabotage the talks
[BR][/P][BR]Attempt to distance themselves from the US
At the same time, however, A US official told Reuters that "information suggests the cause was environmental, not poisoning (by the Russian side)", seeking to de-escalate the situation.
Ukrainian officials dispute poisoning reports
However, Ukrainian officials were keen to dispute the information reported by the US Wall Street Journal.
And later an official in the Ukrainian president's office, Ihor Zhovkva, told the BBC that while he had not spoken to Abramovich, members of the Ukrainian delegation were "fine" and someone claimed the story was "false".
Ukrainian negotiator Mikhailo Podolyak said that "a lot of speculation is being made, various conspiracy theories." Rustem Umerov, another member of Ukraine's negotiating team, urged people not to trust "unverified information".
Also, a US intelligence official said that an "environmental factor" rather than poison was responsible for the symptoms. Something denied, however, by chemical warfare expert Hamish De Bretton-Gordon, who explained to the BBC that "it is highly unlikely that environmental causes caused such symptoms".
The symptoms Abramovich experienced - Reports of vision loss
As noted in the report, the symptoms Abramovich experienced closely resembled poisoning.
Red eyes, constant and painful tearing, and "peeling" skin on his face and hands were some of the symptoms experienced by the 19-year Chelsea owner.
The WSJ report is confirmed by Bellingcat, an investigative journalism group based in the Netherlands, which adds that the incident occurred on the evening of March 3-4.
Even more disturbing, however, is that a Guardian correspondent, citing a source with direct knowledge of the incident, claimed that "Roman lost his vision for several hours" and received treatment in Turkey.
According to two experts and a doctor quoted by Bellingcat, the symptoms were more consistent with "variations of porphyrin, organophosphate or bicyclic drugs."
Definitive identification of the substance was not possible due to the lack of specialized laboratory equipment near the victims, the report said.
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Bellingcat also reports, citing expert statements, that the dose and type of substance was not likely to cause serious, life-threatening damage to the victims.
The three men involved in the report consumed only chocolate and water in the hours before they appeared, according to Bellingcat's information.
Ukraine blames Moscow
The Ukrainians, the WSJ reports, blame "hardliners in Moscow" for the poisoning and describe it as an attempt to sabotage talks to end the war.
Abramovich and the negotiators, at least two in number, according to the WSJ, face no danger to their lives and are now in better condition.
A person close to the Russian oligarch said it is not clear who targeted Abramovich and the negotiators, who reportedly include Crimean Tatar MP Rustem Umerov.
Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, who met with Abramovich, was not affected, the report stressed.
Culeba's incredible statement just before the negotiations: "Don't drink anything, don't eat anything"
Despite the controversy from Ukrainian officials, however, the spike-filled "bombshell" statement by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba came to add fuel to the fire for the affair.
What did he say? He urged Ukrainian negotiators who will sit at the table for talks with the Russians today in Istanbul not to eat or drink anything!
"I advise anyone who goes to negotiate with the Russian Federation not to eat or drink anything. And, preferably, avoid touching any surface. I am telling you from personal experience," Kuleba said in a statement, reported by Skynews.
"Secondly, all these stories - somebody heard something, somewhere, from somebody - have now multiplied, because everybody is hungry for news, for passions," the Ukrainian Foreign Minister claimed.
In any case, this new development - and although Abramovich is not an enemy of Putin, on the contrary - has come to recall instances in the recent past when the West has accused Moscow of poisoning spies or opponents of Putin.
Source:iefimerida.gr
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