British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was attacked in a press conference on Tuesday over the nation’s lack of sanctions on Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich.
Ukrainian journalist Daria Kaleniuk gave an emotional address to Johnson and she broke down in tears while she described the gravity of her nation’s situation after it was invaded by Russia.
Abramovich shares closes tie with the Russian president Vladimir Putin and last week Labour MP Chris Bryant called for Abramovich to be banned from owning the Blues following Russia's decision to invade its geographical neighbour.
On Saturday, Abramovich announced he was relinquishing the "stewardship and care" of Chelsea after himself in the spotlight in recent days in light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The Blues owner is alleged to have links with Vladimir Putin - something he denies - and his ownership of Chelsea has been plunged into doubt in light of the severe sanctions imposed on the invading nation.
His daughter, Sofia, lashed out at the Russian president in a social media post on Friday, pinning the blame for the war in Ukraine solely on Putin rather than his subjects.
The UK’s PM Johnson was addressed directly with Abramovich’s situation and the lack of sanctions against him by Kaleniuk during Tuesday’s press conference.
Kaleniuk culminated an emotional address to the PM by stating: “People in Ukraine are at risk. Imagine crossing the border with a baby, or with two children.
“Ukrainian children are there, taking the hit.
“And you say you are going to impose more sanctions Prime Minister, but Roman Abramovich has not been sanctioned yet.
“He is in London. His children are not in the bombardments, his children are there in London.
“Putin’s children are in the Netherlands. In Germany. In mansions.
“Children are living in mansions, where all these mansions seized? I do not see that."
Breaking down in tears she said: “My family members, my team members, are saying we are crying, we don’t know where to run. This is what is happening, Prime Minister.”
Boris Johnson replied “thank you for getting here today, and I’m glad you’ve been able to get here.”
He admitted: “There is not enough we can do as the UK government to help in the way that you want, and I’ve got to be honest about that.”
Johnson added: “We are trying everything that we can to tighten the economic noose around the Putin regime.”
Abramovich has owned Chelsea since 2003 and overseen the most successful period in the club's history, winning countless trophies - including the Champions League twice - but is rarely seen at Stamford Bridge nowadays.
In the summer of 2018, Abramovich withdrew his application for the renewal of his British visa by the Home Office.
Chelsea subsequently halted plans to build a £500million stadium in south-west London due to the "unfavourable investment climate" and the lack of assurances about Abramovich's immigration status, with the club’s owner having planned to invest hundreds of millions of pounds for the construction of the stadium.
Abramovich has since obtained Israeli citizenship, meaning he now has visa-free entry rights to the United Kingdom for a period of up to six months.
Last week, Johnson confirmed Abramovich "has not been the subject of targeted measures" after mistakenly telling the House of Commons he'd been sanctioned by the government.
