Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposes using Abramovich’s proceeds from the sale of Chelsea to bolster air defence

Zelenskyy spoke about this in an interview with The Guardian.

Transferring funds to Ukraine from the sale of Chelsea could help finance air defence systems to shoot down russian missiles, which frequently strike Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, Zelenskyy said.

“The Prime Minister (Keir Starmer – ed.) said he is doing his utmost, and I know our diplomatic teams are discussing this. It is a difficult situation,” Zelenskyy added.

According to him, these funds could help Ukraine purchase additional missile defence systems from the US.

The E3 countries will assist Ukraine with anti-ballistic defence, the president clarified.

“I hope we will be able to develop a European anti-ballistic system together with the UK. We are working on this. We need it, and the UK needs it,” Zelenskyy said.

Zelenskyy previously stated that in May he met with russian oligarch Roman Abramovich in Kyiv and told him that he was ready to meet with russian President Vladimir Putin in any format and that Ukraine would not withdraw its troops from Donbas.

The £2.35 billion received from the sale of Chelsea, as well as approximately £150 million in interest accrued since 2022, remain frozen in the account of Abramovich’s company, Fordstam Ltd.

Financial reports show that £1.4 billion of this sum belongs to Camberley International Investments Limited, a company registered in Jersey and controlled by Abramovich.

The net proceeds from the sale, after accounting for other balance sheet items, are to be transferred to a charitable foundation, the documents state.

In December 2025, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer ordered that £2.5 billion from the proceeds of Roman Abramovich’s sale of Chelsea Football Club be channelled towards humanitarian aid for Ukraine.

Abramovich has hired leading lawyers to block the transfer of £2.5 billion from the sale of Chelsea to Ukraine in court.

Source: Forbes