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Dutch customs authorities have detained 20 Russian-owned yachts at the country’s shipyards under sanctions connected to Russia’s Ukraine offensive.
“Following the sanctions against Russia and Belarus, customs placed 20 yachts in nine shipyards and traders under increased surveillance,” the authorities noted in a statement.
As a result, the vessels cannot be delivered, transferred or exported.
Of the detained yachts, 14 are said to be under construction, two are in storage and four are in need of maintenance.
The lengths of the vessels range between 8.5m and 120m.
“For two of these yachts, it has been established that they are linked to a person on the EU sanctions list,” a statement said, while another of the yachts is currently under probe.
Furthermore, 14 yachts built for ‘Russian beneficiaries’ have been impounded, the authorities added.
According to the statement, these vessels can still participate in sea trials within a defined area, under the supervision of the Coast Guard and Customs.
Over the last month, several countries have impounded vessels with Russian links, following the country’s military attack on Ukraine.
These include a superyacht, called Crescent, which is believed to be owned by Russian oligarch and Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin. The vessel was seized by Spanish officials.
Spain also impounded Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg’s Tango superyacht at the request of the US. Gibraltar recently detained the Axioma superyacht, which is owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Dmitry Pumpyansky. Meanwhile, the UK detained the Russian-owned superyacht Phi.
