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UKRAINE

France seizes two yachts owned by Russian oligarch

French authorities have seized two yachts, thought to worth a total of €90 million, belonging to Alexey Kuzmichev - a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

French authorities have continued in their seizure of super-yachts and other assets belonging to Russian oligarchs.
French authorities have continued in their seizure of super-yachts and other assets belonging to Russian oligarchs. (Photo by NICOLAS TUCAT / AFP)

French authorities have confiscated two luxury yachts belonging to one of Russia’s most influential businessmen, the latest move by Western governments to seize the assets of associates of President Vladimir Putin over his invasion of Ukraine.

The “Little Bear,” a 17-metre vessel worth €20 million belonging to Alexey Kuzmichev, a main shareholder of the Alfa conglomerate, was seized in the Mediterranean resort of Cannes on March 16, a government source told AFP on Wednesday.

His “Big Bear,” a 26-metre boat that was being serviced in nearby Antibes, reportedly worth €70 million, was seized on Monday.

Kuzmichev, 59, “has well established ties to the Russian president,” the European Union said in a March 15 statement announcing sanctions against Russians suspected of being close to Putin.

As a billionaire who is one of Russia’s biggest taxpayers, he is accused of providing “a substantial source of revenue to the government of the Russian Federation, which is responsible for the annexation of Crimea and the destabilisation of Ukraine,” the statement said.

The French Riviera has long been a favourite retreat for the Russian elite, many of whom got rich by swearing allegiance to Putin as he has consolidated his control of Russia since first becoming elected president in 2000.

Early this month, French authorities seized the “Amore Vero” superyacht belonging to Russia’s oil magnate Igor Sechin, an 86-metre vessel reportedly worth some $120 million.

Spain, Italy and Britain have also seized Russian yachts as part of EU efforts to pressure Putin to call off his invasion of Ukraine.

On Tuesday, Gibraltar officials said they had impounded a superyacht belonging to Russian oligarch Dmitry Pumpyansky following a complaint from a creditor bank.

Pumpyansky, the boss of TMK, Russia’s biggest manufacturer of steel pipes, was added to the list of Russian tycoons targeted by EU and UK sanctions this month following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

Member comments

  1. All wrong and getting totally out of hand. How anyone with the slightest hint of a brain cell would think that this will make any difference is an embarrassment in any Government position. The only reason is jealousy and to keep the baying mob happy.

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UKRAINE

France charges two Moldovans over coffin graffiti in Paris

French prosecutors on Saturday charged two Moldovans suspected of painting coffins and a slogan urging an end to Ukraine war on the facade of a prominent Paris newspaper, a judicial source said.

France charges two Moldovans over coffin graffiti in Paris

It was just the latest in a series of such acts in the capital in recent weeks. French officials have repeatedly warned of the risks of disinformation and other attacks by Russia over France’s support for Kyiv.

Tension between Paris and Moscow has increased since President Emmanuel Macron said earlier this year he had not ruled out sending troops to Ukraine.

The two men, who carried Moldovan passports, were arrested overnight Thursday-Friday after six red coffins and the phrase “Stop the Death, Mriya, Ukraine” were painted on the building of right-wing daily Le Figaro. Mriya means “dream” in Ukrainian.

They are being held on charges of destruction of property and participating in “an effort to demoralise the army to harm national defence in peacetime”, the source said.

Six similar coffins were found early Thursday on the facade of the Agence France-Presse headquarters in central Paris, not far from the Figaro offices.

A source close to the case said the two Moldovans claimed to have been paid around €100 to paint the graffiti.

A separate investigations has been opened after graffiti showing French Mirage fighter jets in the form of coffins were found last Tuesday in three districts of Paris. They included the phrase “Mirages for Ukraine”.

Similar graffiti was discovered on the walls of the AFP building Monday.

Macron announced in early June that France would send Mirage-2000 fighter jets to Ukraine and train their Ukrainian pilots as part of a new military cooperation with Kyiv.

On June 8, French police said they were holding three young Moldovans suspected of being behind inscriptions of coffins in Paris with the slogan “French soldiers in Ukraine”.

They were later charged with property damage and released.

Moldova’s Foreign Minister Mihai Popsoi posted on X, formerly Twitter: “We regret and firmly condemn the incident”.

He said the “vandalism” was “part of hybrid tactics to harm our international image”.

Popsoi reiterated his comment on Saturday, denouncing an “instigation to hate”.

“We call on Moldovan citizens to be vigilant and not to allow themselves to be manipulated to the detriment of our country.”

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