A luxury yacht owned by licensed Russian oligarch Alexei Mordashov left Hong Kong waters on Thursday for the port of Cape Town, South Africa, according to private tracking site MarineTraffic.
In recent weeks, the conspicuous sight of the 465-foot (141-meter) multi-deck Nord in Victoria Harbor has sparked criticism from the US State Department, which has questioned the financial hub’s “transparency” and warned of reputational risks.
Mordashov, a billionaire close to President Vladimir Putin, is one of many Russians who have been sanctioned by the United States and the European Union, not the United Nations, after Russia invaded Ukraine over its ties to Putin. was.
While many Russian superyachts have been seized or denied entry into Europe and other jurisdictions, the Nord was left unattended in Hong Kong after arriving on 5 October.
Valued at more than $500 million, the vessel arrived from Vladivostok in the Russian Far East after a seven-day voyage, passing through the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea.
The Hong Kong Maritime Authority later confirmed Nord left Hong Kong on Thursday but said it could not comment further.
The MarineTraffic site put the vessel southeast of Hong Kong waters early Thursday evening, heading for the South China Sea.
Witnesses saw a fuel barge alongside the ship in the harbor at noon.
Hong Kong leader John Lee said on Oct. 11 that Hong Kong authorities would not respond to unilateral sanctions imposed on Mordashov by individual jurisdictions.
“We can’t do anything without a legal basis,” said Lee, who has been sanctioned by the United States for his involvement in cracking down on freedoms in the region.
Lee, who is set to host an international investment summit with world business leaders in November, said China-controlled cities would only be subject to United Nations sanctions.
Sanctions target Russian oligarch’s yacht
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– Source: CNN
