Billionaire oligarch Roman Abramovich Three years after withdrawing his UK visa application amid diplomatic tensions between London and Moscow, he has become an EU citizen.
On Saturday, his spokesperson confirmed this unexpected development. He revealed the Russian-born owner Chelsea Earlier this year, the football club obtained Portuguese citizenship.
According to Portuguese newspapers, Abramovich’s successful application used Portuguese law to allow naturalization of descendants of Hispanic Jews who were expelled from the Iberian Peninsula during the Inquisition. Listed.
In 2018, after international condemnation, Abramovich chose not to continue to apply for a British visa. Salisbury poisoning incident And changes that make it more difficult for powerful Russians to obtain visas.
Complications prompt Abramovich to cancel plan Build a £500 million stadium for ChelseaIt is said that the plan will bring more than 20 million pounds of community benefits to surrounding areas.
His new EU passport means that if he chooses to stay and work in the UK now, he needs to pass the UK points-based post-Brexit immigration system and meet “specific requirements”.
However, his Portuguese passport came after he obtained an Israeli passport at the end of 2018, which means he can already visit his family in the UK without a visa.
Since the law was passed in 2015, thousands of Israeli Jews have obtained Portuguese citizenship, and the family tree of the applicant has been reviewed by experts looking for evidence of interest in Spanish culture. It is understood that Abramovich has donated money to a project in Hamburg to commemorate the heritage of the Portuguese Jews in Sefadi.
Ministry of Justice documents show that Abramovich obtained citizenship on April 30.
Some observers may believe that the issuance of Portuguese passports is a new way for Russian oligarchs to obtain the coveted EU citizenship.
A popular way for Russian oligarchs (some of whom have been accused of corruption) to obtain EU passports is to use the controversial “golden visa” program.
2017 guardian disclose How the Cypriot government raised more than 4 billion euros in four years by providing citizenship to the super-rich, giving them the right to live and work throughout Europe, in exchange for cash investment. Documents indicate that more than 400 passports are issued through the program each year.
In 1492, when the “Catholic Monarch”, Queen Isabella of Castile, and King Ferdinand of Aragon ordered them and the country’s Muslims to convert to Catholicism or leave, an estimated 300,000 Jews lived in Spain.Tens of thousands fled to PortugalHe was not persecuted or expelled there until 1496.
The total number of Jews, Muslims, Catholics, persons accused of witchcraft, scientists, and other non-Catholics killed by the Spanish Inquisition authorized by Sixtus IV in the Pope Bull in 1478 is estimated to range from tens of thousands to several. It ranges from one hundred thousand. .
Abramovich made a fortune in the Russian oil industry in the 1990s (it is believed to exceed £10 billion) and bought Chelsea in 2003.
