The more than 92m long superyacht Royal Romance has been chained up for months in the Croatian port city of Rijeka. She was built in 2005 by the Dutch company Feadship.
The vessel was seized by Croatian authorities after Medvedchuk was arrested in Ukraine in March. Medvedchuk was extradited from Ukraine to Russia in September in a prisoner exchange.
Medvedchuk, 68, is a personal friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin is even godfather to Medvedchuk’s daughter Daria. Medvedchuk becomes the “dark princeof Ukrainian politics, for his open loyalty to Putin.
As a result of Western sanctions, the cases of Russian leaders and other Putin allies are being seized around the world. These include houses, ships and cars. It is the first time that the proceeds from the sale go entirely to Ukraine.
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February, Western countries have taken tough measures against hundreds of so-called oligarchs. These are wealthy businessmen from the former Soviet states who have a lot of political influence. They built their fortunes around the disintegration of the Soviet Union, often through obscure or even illegal means.
In September, a superyacht belonging to Russian oligarch Dmitry Pumpyansky was auctioned. It was the first time that a property seized as a result of the sanctions had been sold.
An anonymous buyer paid 37 million euros for it. This amount did not go to Ukraine, but to the US bank JP Morgan. The bank said Pumpyansky still had outstanding debt.
