Russian businessman and mediator Roman Abramovich, MP of Ukraine Rustam Umerov and another representative of the Ukrainian side were found to have symptoms of poisoning after negotiations in Kyiv on the night of March 3 and 4, 2022, aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.

"Following the meeting in the Ukrainian capital, Mr. Abramovich, who has shuttled between Moscow, Lviv and other negotiating venues, as well as at least two senior members of the Ukrainian team developed symptoms that included red eyes, constant and painful tearing, and peeling skin on their faces and hands," The Wall Street Journal said on Monday.

The victims blamed the alleged attack on "hard-liners in Moscow who they say want to sabotage talks to end the war." At the same time, a source close to Abramovich told the publication that it was not clear who was targeting the group.

The victims have since recovered, according to The Wall Street Journal, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who also had a meeting with Abramovich, was unharmed.

Western experts who looked into the incident said it was hard to determine whether the symptoms were caused by a chemical or biological agent or by some sort of electromagnetic-radiation attack, the people familiar with the matter said.

This information is confirmed by the British journalistic expert group Bellingcat. "Bellingcat can confirm that three members of the delegation who attended the peace talks between Ukraine and Russia on the night of March 3 and 4, 2022, showed symptoms of chemical weapons poisoning. One of the victims was Russian businessman Roman Abramovich," according to Twitter of the investigative group.

According to them, on the basis of remote and field examinations, the experts concluded that the symptoms are most likely the result of poisoning by an unidentified chemical weapon. "An alternative less likely hypothesis was the use of microwave radiation. Symptoms gradually subsided over the next week," Bellingcat said.

The Guardian journalist Sean Walker also confirmed this and said that Abramovich lost his sight for several hours as a result of poisoning, after which he was taken to Turkey for treatment.

"A source with direct knowledge has just confirmed to me the WSJ/Bellingcat reports that Abramovich suffered symptoms of poisoning. Roman lost his sight for several hours and was treated in Turkey," Walker said on Twitter.

Adviser to the head of the President's Office Mykhailo Podoliak, in turn, said that all members of the negotiating group are currently working as usual, according to the Channel 24 website.

"There are a lot of information speculations in the information space, various conspiracy theories and elements of this or that information game. Therefore, I repeat once again - the members of the negotiating groups are working today in regular modes," Podoliak said, commenting on the information about the poisoning of the negotiators.