Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has been named as an unlikely broker in a deal to end the war in Ukraine and has reportedly arrived in Belarus to assist in peace talks, it has today emerged.
The Russian-Israeli billionaire is believed to have flown into the eastern European country ahead of crunch talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials.
It comes as the UK Government faces mounting pressure to sanction him and other oligarchs over Vladimir Putin's siege of Ukraine.
His role as a broker in the talks has been confirmed by his spokesman, who claimed the mega-rich businessman had become involved after a request from the Jewish community in Kyiv.