PARIS (Reuters) – French customs have seized a yacht belonging to Rosneft boss Igor Sechin as it tried to depart the Mediterranean port of La Ciotat in a breach of EU sanctions on Russian oligarchs, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire mentioned.
The transfer got here as western states are implementing huge sanctions, together with asset freezes, towards Russia for invading its neighbour Ukraine. A separate practically $600 million luxurious yacht owned by Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov has additionally been seized, by German authorities, Forbes reported.
The 88-metre “Amore Vero” arrived in La Ciotat on Jan.3 and was due to keep there till April 1st for repairs, the finance ministry mentioned in an announcement, including that the vessel was topic to the brand new sanctions.
But on Wednesday, customs officers famous the yacht was “taking steps to sail off urgently, with out the restore works being over,” the assertion mentioned, including that the officers due to this fact determined to seize it.
The finance ministry mentioned the yacht belongs to an organization whose primary shareholder is Sechin, a detailed ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The superyacht was constructed by Oceanco within the Netherlands and delivered to its proprietor in 2013, in accordance to yachtcharterfleet.com, which says its onboard options embody a magnificence salon and gymnasium. It sails below the flag of the Cayman islands, in accordance to Eikon information.
“Thank you to the French customs officers who’re implementing the European Union’s sanctions towards these shut to the Russian authorities”, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire mentioned in a Tweet.
Separately, French authorities on Thursday additionally seized a Russian-owned cargo vessel within the port of Lorient, Brittany.
(Additional reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Writing by Tassilo Hummel and Ingrid Melander; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel)
