Spain seizes third yacht in operation against Russian oligarchs

Spain has temporarily detained a third luxury yacht in connection with the EU sanctions against Russian oligarchs.

It is the 135-metre-long Crescent, which sails under the flag of the Cayman Islands. It is moored in the port of Tarragona, south-east of Barcelona, the newspaper La Vanguardia reported on Wednesday.

Since Monday, two other mega-yachts have been seized by the Spanish authorities - one in Barcelona and one in Mallorca.

It is now being determined whether and to what extent the vessels are affected by the sanctions imposed on Russian oligarchs in the context of the Ukraine war.

The aim is to identify the actual owners. In the case of the Crescent, built in 2018 at the Lürssen shipyard in Bremen, this may be Igor Sechin, the chief executive of Rosneft and a confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Europa Press news agency reported.

EU sanctions list

Sechin is on the EU sanctions list.

The Spanish authorities have highlighted the difficulty of establishing the ownership of assets with legal clarity. Almost always, letterbox companies in tax havens were registered as the owners.

The authorities have at least a dozen Russian oligarchs in their sights, wrote La Vanguardia.

It is not only luxury yachts that are being targeted, but also bank accounts, companies and real estate.