Russian oligarch yacht Nord crosses Strait of Hormuz

Luxury vessel linked to Alexey Mordashov sails through strategic waterway despite naval restrictions by Iran and the United States

The Russian oligarch yacht Nord crosses Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints, despite naval restrictions enforced in the المنطقة by both Iran and the United States.

The 142-meter superyacht, flying the Russian flag and linked to billionaire Alexey Mordashov, made the passage in recent days. The vessel, valued at over $500 million, is equipped with high-end features including a swimming pool, a submarine, and a helicopter landing platform, according to Superyacht Times.

Tracking data cited by the BBC and provided by Marine Traffic shows the yacht departed Dubai on Friday night and arrived Sunday morning at the Al Mouj Marina in Muscat, the capital of Oman. In recent months, only a handful of private vessels have navigated the strait.

Mordashov, chairman of the steel giant Severstal, is among the most prominent figures targeted by Western sanctions imposed by the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. With an estimated net worth of around $37 billion, he is considered Russia’s richest individual, according to Forbes.

He is not formally listed as the owner of the yacht. The vessel was registered in 2022 to a company linked to his wife. It remains unclear whether Mordashov was on board during the transit through the Strait of Hormuz. In the past, authorities in Hong Kong and the Maldives did not seize the yacht despite requests from Western governments to freeze related assets.

On the diplomatic front, contacts between Iran and Russia continue to intensify. In St. Petersburg, President Vladimir Putin met with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who described relations between the two countries as “strategic.” According to the Tass news agency, Putin praised the Iranian people for their “courageous defense of sovereignty.”

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(Photo: © AndKronos)