Ukraine-News: Oligarch yacht costs Italy 20,000 euros a day - Rome is now considering the sale
Created: 05/02/2022 11:19 am
By: Patricia Huber
The "Sailing Yacht A" is currently in the port of Trieste - and causes high costs there.
© David Parody/dpa
As a result of the Ukraine war, Italy has already seized several Russian oligarch yachts.
But these are now becoming a financial problem, which is why the country is considering selling them.
Trieste - As part of the sanctions against Russia and Russian oligarchs, some luxury yachts have already been moored in different countries.
In the port of the Italian city of Trieste, for example, the sailing yacht called "Sailing Yacht A" is now worth around 530 million euros.
It is believed to belong to Russian billionaire Andrei Melnichenko.
So far so good, but the 143 meter long ship is now causing problems for the Italian authorities.
Ukraine News: Yacht maintenance costs 20,000 euros per day
Because the maintenance of such mega-ships is complex and costs the state a lot of money.
As the
FAZ
reports, the maintenance of the "Sailing Yacht A" eats up 20,000 euros per day alone.
This pays for the berth, electricity, water and maintenance of the ship.
Therefore, a spokesman for the Italian Ministry of Finance and Economy has now confirmed to the
FAZ
that the government is indeed examining the leasing or even the sale of Russian assets.
But it's not quite that simple.
According to the EU sanctions, the assets of the oligarchs should only be "frozen".
With the end of the Ukraine war, the sanctions could also be lifted again, after which the EU regulation would provide for the assets to be returned.
Lawyer Simone Moretti from Genoa told the
FAZ
: "In my opinion, a sale would violate the spirit of EU regulations".
Ukraine-News: Freeze of assets possible since 9/11 attacks
Because the possibility of freezing assets was created after the attacks of September 11, 2001.
At the time, it was supposed to be used to combat the financing of terrorism.
With the beginning of the Ukraine conflict, however, the regulation was extended.
"One of the Italian government's ideas is to sell assets to cover the operating costs incurred and then return the rest of the income to the former owners after the sanctions have ended," Milan lawyer Massimo Greco told the
FAZ
.
Since most of the Russian oligarchs did not have their accounts in Italy, there is hardly any money to pay for maintenance.
Thus, the state has to bear the costs - unless it rents or sells the yachts.
