Effective life of Abramovich: political strategist Markelov revealed the secret of success

Roman Abramovich once again showed a master class in the art of getting out of the water dry. The businessman denied the proceeds after the sale of the Chelsea club 2.3 billion pounds, which the day before it was decided to give to Ukraine. Say, he himself does not have access to money, and the transfer of finances to Independent is the will of the exclusively British authorities. However, “assistance to Ukraine” was automatically included in Abramovich’s asset, along with the role of a negotiator in Istanbul and participation in the prisoner exchange process.

How the billionaire manages to maneuver between the parties to the conflict, maintaining the image of a “good guy” even for Western countries, “MK” was told by political strategist, political psychologist Sergei Markelov.

Roman Abramovich is far from the only Russian oligarch to fall under Western sanctions, recalls Sergei Markelov. However, he stands out against the background of the same Mikhail Fridman and Peter Aven.

For example, Friedman said in an interview that he “didn’t know how to live on.” And Aven told reporters that the 2,500 pounds per month allowed by the British authorities was not enough for him even to pay for the services of a cleaning lady and a personal driver. Unlike his brothers in misfortune, Abramovich has chosen a fundamentally different strategy for himself: he never complains and every time he demonstrates vigorous activity aimed at creation.

– Roman Abramovich built for himself a model of effective life. He is useful for himself, and at the same time created the illusion of his usefulness to society. Moreover, both Russian and Ukrainian and even Western. He is in the general “package” of people whom no one likes. However, most likely, it is from him that the West and Ukraine will lift sanctions from the first, – Markelov predicts.

The political strategist emphasized that Abramovich regularly demonstrates redundancy in his behavior: he gives more than he receives. This is exactly what happens to the money raised from the sale of Chelsea.

– Abramovich himself shows complete humility. He declares that he himself will not receive anything from the sale of the football club. At the same time, he makes a subtle move, relieving himself of responsibility for transferring money to Ukraine, the expert says.

Recall that earlier the British edition of The Telegraph reported Abramovich’s decision to send 2.3 billion pounds (2.8 billion dollars) to a fund to help victims of the military operation in Ukraine. The press office of the businessman, in response to this information, issued a statement in which he denied the involvement of the oligarch in the decision to transfer money.

From the point of view of the political strategist, both the news of British journalists and the reaction of Abramovich’s PR people play into his hands, creating an aura of mystery around the businessman. Firstly, he himself does not seem to decide anything: he is under sanctions, and the Anglo-Saxons manage his money. Secondly, it is not clear what kind of fund will take Abramovich’s billions. But the mere mention of some third structure through which funds can be “driven” can be a hint for the rest of the sanctioned representatives of large Russian business.

Thirdly, it is not clear what exactly the assistance will be used for in practice. Maybe to patch up the Yavoriv range. In any case, the oligarch himself sent a clear signal to the public: he had nothing to do with it.

The expert also noted another feature of Abramovich’s strategy of behavior – he manages to be friends with all parties to the conflict:

– Abramovich demonstrates true “Jewishness” in the good sense of the word. He manages to make friends with everyone – from Portuguese Jews to representatives of the world’s elites. In the tradition of pure, non-tabloid religious Jewry, he often provides help. In terms of PR, he is one of the “good guys”.

Many large businessmen worked according to this scheme, but Abramovich succeeded better than others.

In addition, according to Markelov, the fundamental quality of a rich person helps a billionaire to stay afloat even under the yoke of sanctions – the presence of connections with politicians of the highest level. Perhaps it was precisely such connections that gave the billionaire the necessary information, which allowed him to transfer assets to his children in the first days of February 2022. According to the British edition of the Guardian, Abramovich could transfer the assets of ten Cypriot trusts worth $4 billion to his seven children:

– Abramovich has built correct communication with the world’s elites, and now uses these channels for his business and political services. Of course, Arbamovich is not a negotiator. For big political players, it is a useful feature.

He is not a genius, but a person who knows how to competently manage connections and the information that these connections provide. Obviously, shortly before the start of the special operation, Abramovich received some hints: “Roman, act!” Therefore, he managed to transfer the assets to his children.