On Friday, Italian authorities seized a giant superyacht that is said to be owned by Russian President Vladimir Putin after the Italian government recommended that the ship be impounded as part of the West’s ongoing campaign of sanctions against Russia.
The Daily Mail reported that Italian authorities said that the $700 million mega-yacht named “The Scheherazade,” is more than 450 feet long and contains spas, swimming pools, and two helicopter pads.
The giant yacht has been the subject of an ongoing investigation by Italy’s financial police since the end of this past March and has been docked at Marina di Carrara near Pisa since this past September as it undergoes a refit.
The Italian government’s seizure of the ship came late at night as Italian officials grew increasingly concerned that The Scheherazade was going to slip away from their jurisdiction and into international waters to avoid Western sanctions.
Reportedly, in recent days there has been a flurry of activity around the yacht. In March, the ship's majority Russian crew had been replaced with a British staff overnight.
Indicating that the ship had connections to Russia, The Italian Financial Police released a statement that said, “After verification by the fiscal authorities, it has come to light that there is a significant economic connection between the owner of The Scheherazade and senior elements of the Russian government.”
The statement continued, “On the basis of these elements, it has been recommended that the yacht be placed on the current European Union sanctions list, and the Minister of Finance in Rome has agreed.”
Mariateresa Levi, a member of the Italian Financial police, said, “I am not in a position to tell you who the actual owner is, but we are satisfied that the yacht should be seized, and in the next few hours, officers will board and impound her.”
The ship's captain has denied that Putin is the owner of the superyacht while refusing to disclose who the real owner is.
There have been claims that the vessel might belong to Eduard Khudainatov, a Russian oil tycoon who has previously been able to escape Western sanctions, unlike many other Russian oligarchs.
Despite this, activists and investigative journalists linked to Alexei Navalny, the imprisoned Russian opposition leader, are adamant that the ship belongs to Putin.
A probe into the vessel’s former Russian crew revealed that almost all of them worked for Russian secret service agencies charged with protecting the Russian president.
Roman Abramovich, the former owner of the Chelsea FC soccer team, in recent weeks has been serving as an impromptu diplomat as he works to convey messages between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Abramovich, a fabulously wealthy Russian businessman, is currently attempting to avoid Western sanctions on his wealth by residing in Istanbul, Turkey. Aside from his business endeavors, Abramovich is well known for his close relationship with Putin.
From his residence in Turkey, Abramovich has been acting as a “peacemaker,” according to the Daily Mail, as he flies back and forth between Moscow and Ukraine communicating with Putin and Zelenskyy.
Last Wednesday, Abramovich left his Istanbul residence aboard a private jet for Moscow.
The oligarch flew into the Russian capital to meet with Putin and give him a handwritten note from Zelenskyy that outlined Ukraine’s terms for peace.
In response to this, Putin is reported to have said, “Tell him I will thrash them.”
After meeting with Putin in Moscow, Abramovich returned to Istanbul, where he met with the Ukrainian politician turned negotiator Rustem Umerov.
In Turkey, Abramovich and Umerov were assisted in negotiations with Ibrahim Kalin, the spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Kalin suggested that Ukrainian officials make a deal with their Russian counterparts in which Crimea and Donbas be held under a long-term lease — similar to the situation between Britain and China regarding Hong Kong.
Putin is reportedly considering the agreement, but his intense frustration with his military’s lack of success and disdain for Zelenskyy are holding him back.
Abramovich is one of several Russian oligarchs seeking refuge from Western sanctions in Turkey. He currently has two of his superyachts moored in Bodrum, a city on the country’s southwest coast.
Abramovich, in particular, has been able to work around sanctions from the Turkish government, despite his close relationship with Putin, because of his utility and willingness to participate in and assist with peace talks.
Previous peace talks hosted by Turkey between Russian and Ukrainian coalitions reportedly failed.
This experience is not unique, however.
Efforts to secure peace are proving to be increasingly difficult as the conflict drags on.
Leadership in the Israeli government has also run into trouble trying to advocate for peace.
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke with Zelenskyy over the phone in mid-March and urged him to accept Putin’s conditions for peace, including an immediate cease to military action, enshrining geopolitical neutrality in the Ukrainian constitution, officially recognizing Crimea as Russian territory, and recognizing Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states.
Zelenskyy was not agreeable to these terms.
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