Abramovich: No More Politics

Roman Abramovich, the billionaire owner of Chelsea football club, yesterday resigned as governor of the remote region of Chukotka, signalling his departure from Russia.

The 40-year-old oil tycoon has sold off most of his assets at home and spends most of his time in western Europe.

Severing the 5,400-mile link that prompted the headlines "From Chukotka to Chelsea" when he first marched into British football, Mr Abramovich made clear he was staying out of politics, a demand issued to Russia's oligarchs by the president, Vladimir Putin.

Mr Abramovich recently announced he would fund several patriotic sporting projects and promised yesterday to keep up ties with the isolated outpost in Russia's far east, home to a dwindling population of reindeer herders and polar bears.

His willingness to cooperate with the Kremlin means he is unlikely to suffer the fate of jailed businessman Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the ambitious head of the Yukos oil company who dabbled in politics.

Mr Abramovich announced his resignation in a meeting with Mr Putin at the Kremlin. He was elected to the post in 2000 and plans to leave on January 1.

A spokesman confirmed the resignation. "Over the past six years he has spent and attracted hundreds of millions of dollars in investment to rebuild Chukotka from the ground up," he said. Chukotka was declared bankrupt two years ago, but it now had "modern infrastructure, a solid budget and a long-term development strategy drafted by the Abramovich administration", he said.

The Kremlin could not immediately confirm how Mr Putin would respond. "The president has not made a decision regarding Abramovich's request," said the chief press spokesman, Alexei Gromov.