by Marco Imarisio
The role of the tycoon as “interpreter” is still unclear. Peskow denies the Kuleba poisoning to the negotiators: do not eat and do not drink
They are all good. At least it seems so. Roman Abramovich appears early this morning in the hall of the Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul for an interview with President Tayyip Erdogan, which is also attended by Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. Not quite what you would call a secluded position. Because the interlocutors are the two men who have been carrying out this mediation attempt for weeks. At one point, the Russian oligarch even manages to smile, a rare occurrence when football is not at stake.
Russian agency RIA Novosti, the official mouthpiece, was the first to report his presence. Almost a way of emphasizing the Kremlin’s closeness to a still trustworthy person. It’s no use looking for traces of the alleged poisoning in the merchant’s face, unfathomable and withdrawn as he was. As the talks begin, Turkish television frames him as he sits at a side table, intent on listening to a simultaneous translation accompanied by Ibrahim Kalihn, Erdogan’s press secretary.
Dmitry Peskov, the voice of Vladimir Putin, has branded the poisoning attempt “wrong” and described it as a typical war information strategy. It’s possible that’s the case, although Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba was keen to warn his negotiators, who were sitting at the table with the Russian counterpart, not to drink or eat with them. “Also, if possible, avoid touching any surface,” he said. And it didn’t sound like a joke.
Whether it’s truth or simple propaganda, both Moscow and Kyiv have denied their existence, but the attack that allegedly killed Abramovich along with three other Ukrainian delegates cast an even more enigmatic beacon on his figure than usual. And his role in negotiations, which everyone looks at with great concern.
Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK, Vadym Pristaiko, has clearly distanced himself, as if the fact that Volodymyr Zelenskyy himself asked for his involvement was a trivial detail. He’s not one of us, he told the BBC. “I have no idea what he’s doing or what he’s claiming, but I know he’s not part of the delegations called upon to negotiate.” Peskov also explained the oligarch’s presence for the first time, using words that spelled every possible one leave open to interpretation. «He undertook to ensure some contacts between the Russian and Ukrainian sides. He is not an official member of the delegation. But he is also present on our side in Istanbul».
Abramovich, the son of no one, is suitable for everyone, that’s the truth. Russia and Ukraine protect him by downplaying the importance of his presence because it serves both governments. Today and maybe even in the postwar future. Gleb Pavlosky, who was Putin’s political adviser until 2011 and knows the Russian tycoon well, claims he’s doing the interpreter’s job. “At this point he seems to me the only one able to filter propaganda proclamations to translate them into diplomatic language and thus into concrete proposals.” The only thing that is certain is that the Abramovich mystery will keep us company for a long time to come. Maybe it’s not necessarily bad.
March 30, 2022 (Modification March 30, 2022 | 07:31)
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