A superyacht seized by the US on Monday
(Picture: via REUTERS)The Dutch government has prevented fourteen superyachts from leaving the country to ensure they don’t break sanctions imposed on Russia over the war in Ukraine.
Foreign minister Wopke Hoekstra told parliament in a letter that the complicated ownership of the vessels were being investigated.
A dozen of the fourteen yachts are currently under construction, with the remaining two being in the Netherlands for maintenance.
“The situation is, at the moment, that in five yards there are 12 yachts under construction for so-called Russian ultimate beneficial owners," Mr Hoekstra said.
“Because of the current export measures, these vessels should not be delivered."
However, Wednesday's letter said no superyachts are anchored in Dutch territories including Caribbean islands like St. Maarten.
“For one of these yachts, the relationship with a person named on European sanctions lists is being examined," it said.
The update said 516 million euros in assets and 155 million euros in transactions have been frozen by the Dutch government, up slightly from last week.
Yacht-building is a significant industry in the Netherlands.
The move comes after the US seized a 254-foot yacht in Spain owned by an oligarch with close ties to Putin on Monday.
The €90m Euro (£75,372,000) yacht called ‘Tango’ is linked to billionaire Viktor Vekselberg, who also on the UK sanctions list.
Italy and France also seized several yachts. The superyachts seized by France include one believed to belong to Igor Sechin, a Putin ally who runs Russian oil giant Rosneft.
The company which has been on the US sanctions list since Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.
