bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Chelsea soccer club owner Roman Abramovich enjoyed "privileged access" to Russian President Vladimir Putin but held no significant influence over him, a British high court judge said.
Judge Elizabeth Gloster said that while the Russian billionaire had "very good relations" with the president, he had not been in a position to "manipulate" him.
The judge was publishing her ruling after rejecting Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky's claims against his compatriot last month after a four-month trial.
Berezovsky had accused Abramovich of blackmail, breach of trust and breach of contract, claiming the Chelsea owner had intimidated him into selling shares in the Russian oil company Sibneft.
But Gloster, ruling in favour of Abramovich, found Berezovsky to be an "unreliable witness".
In the full ruling she said: "It was clear from the evidence that, at the material times, Mr Abramovich enjoyed very good relations with President Putin and others in power at the Kremlin.
"It was also clear that Mr Abramovich had privileged access to President Putin, in the sense that he could arrange meetings and discuss matters with him." But she said he had not been in a position to "pull the presidential strings".
She said: "There was no evidential basis supporting the contention that Mr Abramovich was in a position to manipulate, or otherwise influence, President Putin, or officers in his administration, to exercise their powers in such a way as to enable Mr Abramovich to achieve his own commercial goals.
"I am prepared to assume that, on occasion, President Putin may have taken his views into account when making decisions, but the suggestion that Mr Abramovich was in a position to pull the presidential strings was not borne out by the evidence."
The judge described Abramovich as a "truthful" and "on the whole reliable" witness who gave "careful and thoughtful answers" under cross-examination.
Berezovsky, on the other hand, was branded "an unimpressive and inherently unreliable witness, who regarded truth as a transitory, flexible concept, which could be moulded to suit his current purposes".


Labour MPs urge UK to protect Hong Kong BN(O) migrants from residency reforms

China cuts US Treasury holdings to lowest level since 2008 amid debt ceiling fears

Beijing, Hong Kong slam G7 over criticism of Jimmy Lai trial verdict

Despite lapses behind Tai Po fire, Hong Kong’s unity shows in a time of crisis

Roman Abramovich did not 'pull strings' of Putin, judge decides