The superyachts (worth £680m) seized from oligarchs as sanctions hit Russians
As the Russian invasion in Ukraine continues, so too does the wave of economic sanctions against the nation’s oligarchs with links to president Vladimir Putin.
On Tuesday, the UK announced sanctions against a further 350 Russian individuals and entities, taking the total to more than 1,000.
And the EU imposed its own sanctions on 15 new individuals, including Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, who was already on the UK list.
One of the most prized assets of oligarchs are their superyachts - and these are now being seized on a regular basis.
The latest vessel to be seized through sanctions belonged to oligarch Sergei Chemezov, a close ally of Putin.
Here are the luxury vessels that have been take off the hands of Russian oligarchs since their country's invasion of Ukraine began almost three weeks ago.
Sergei Chemezov - Valerie superyacht - £115m
A superyacht belonging to Sergei Chemezov was seized by Spanish authorities in Barcelona on Monday.
The boat, named Valerie, is estimated to be worth about £115m.
Chemezov is a former KGB officer with strong links to Russian president Vladimir Putin.
He is the chief executive of the Russian state-owned conglomerate Rostec, which comprises 700 businesses across the defence and civil sectors.
Chemezov was appointed to the role by Putin - the pair became friends when stationed in the old East Germany in the 1980s.
The Valerie is 85m long and sails under the flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The vessel is registered to Chemezov's stepdaughter, Anastasia Ignatova, through a British Virgin Islands company, according to a 2021 article published in the Pandora Papers information leak.
Chemezov was sanctioned by the EU and the US in 2014 and the UK in 2020 over Russia's annexation of Crimea and was named in sanctions lists this month by the US and Australia.
Andrey Melnichenko - Sailing Yacht A - £450m
On Saturday, Italian police seized the superyacht Sailing Yacht A, owned by Russian billionaire Andrey Melnichenko, said to be close to Putin.
The 143m long yacht was seized at the northern port of Trieste.
Melnichenko owned major fertiliser producer EuroChem Group and coal company SUEK. The companies said in statements on Thursday that he had resigned as a member of the board in both companies and withdrawn as their beneficiary.
A spokesperson for Melnichenko, Alex Andreev, said the billionaire industrialist has "no relation to the tragic events in Ukraine” and “no political affiliations".
He was placed on the EU sanctions list on 9 March. He had attended a meeting between Putin and other oligarchs in February just before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Alexei Mordashov - Lady M - £20m
The Lady M superyacht belonging to Russia’s richest man, Alexei Mordashov, was seized by Italian authorities earlier this month.
The 65m boat was seized at the northern Italian port of Imperia.
Mordashov is under EU sanctions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The EU called him the “personal bank” of the senior officials who benefited from Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.
He is the chairman of Severstal, Russia’s largest steel and mining company.
According to Forbes, he has a net worth of about £22bn.
Gennady Timchenko - Lena - £6m
The 40m long superyacht Lena, belonging to billionaire Russian businessman Gennady Timchenko, was seized in the Italian port city of Sanremo earlier this month.
Timchenko was placed under EU sanctions and UK sanctions last month. He is a close friend of Putin, who gave him an oil export licence in 1991.
Igor Sechin - Amore Vero - £91m
Earlier this month, French authorities seized the 85m long Amore Vero superyacht belonging to Igor Sechin, a long-time confidante of Putin’s.
Nicknamed “Darth Vader”, Sechin served as Russia’s deputy prime minister from 2008 to 2012 and now runs the management board of oil company Rosneft.
The EU sanctioned Sechin last month and had his assets frozen. The UK has also imposed sanctions on Sechin.
