Chelsea owner Abramovich’s luxury yacht docks in Turkey
A yacht belonging to sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich has docked in the Turkish resort town of Bodrum, Turkish media have reported.
It comes amid international moves to freeze assets belonging to top Russian businessmen with close ties to the Kremlin.
Private Turkish broadcaster NTV said the Bermuda-flagged luxury yacht Solaris docked at Turkey’s southern port – which has not joined sanctions against Russia – after departing Montenegro.
A group of Ukrainians carrying Ukrainian flags with the words “No war” on them boarded a small motorboat and tried to prevent the yacht from docking, the Sozcu newspaper reported.
It was unclear whether Mr Abramovich was on board the yacht or whether he had been moved to Turkey to avoid sanctions.
The European Union last week imposed sanctions on Mr Abramovich as it updated a list of people subject to asset freezes and travel bans because of their links to the government of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who sent the Russian army to invade Ukraine.
Mr. Abramovich had already been punished in Britain.
Turkey, a member of NATO, maintains close ties with Russia and Ukraine. He criticized Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine but also positioned himself as a neutral party trying to mediate between the two.
Turkey has closed the Turkish Strait connecting the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea to most Russian warships, but has not imposed sanctions on Russia or closed its airspace to Russian flights.
Last week, Mr Abramovich arrived in Istanbul from Jerusalem on his private jet before departing for Moscow the following morning.