The US government is targeting oligarch superyachts.
(Photo: dpa)
Washington Against the background of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the US government is imposing new sanctions on oligarchs close to the Kremlin. The punitive measures caused “high costs for those who support President Vladimir Putin’s war,” the US Treasury Department said on Tuesday. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stressed: “While innocent people suffer from Russia’s illegal war of aggression, Putin’s allies have enriched themselves and funded an opulent lifestyle.”
After the EU, the USA also put former gymnast Alina Kabaeva on the criminal list. The 2004 Olympic champion now runs the large Russian media company NMG. The EU said it was “in close contact” with President Vladimir Putin. In the tabloids there is talk of a relationship between the two.
Putin’s confidant Andrei Guryev and his son are also affected by the sanctions. The luxury yacht “Alfa Nero”, which Guryev is said to have bought in 2014 for 120 million dollars, was expressly mentioned. The devices tracking the yacht’s location have reportedly been turned off to avoid confiscation, the statement said.
The Treasury also said punitive measures would be taken against several individuals, a multinational and a Russian company. Any possessions of those affected in the United States will be frozen, and US citizens are prohibited from doing business with them. At the same time, the US State Department has imposed entry restrictions on those affected.
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Three Ukrainians who work for the Russian occupiers in southern Ukraine were also put on the US sanctions list. These are the head of the occupation administration of the Kherson region Vladimir Saldo and his deputy Kirill Stremusov. The mayor of the port city of Mariupol, Konstantin Ivashchenko, who was appointed by Russia, was also sanctioned.
More: Yachts, planes, bank accounts: the West stands in its own way in the hunt for oligarch treasure