The oligarch Alexei Kouzmitchev, close to Vladimir Putin, obtained the lifting of the freezing of one of his yachts immobilized since March in Antibes (Alpes-Maritimes) within the framework of the sanctions taken by the European Union after the invasion of Ukraine.
In an order dated Wednesday, the Paris Court of Appeal canceled for irregularities the report of the visit of the ship on March 16.
However, the cancellation of this act does not result in the cancellation of the following report which relates to the notification of the freezing of the yacht.
"
The result is that the measure of immobilization of the vessel concerned remains at the end of this order
", specified to AFP the general prosecutor's office of Paris.
“
The court confirms that the customs had carried out a visit in defiance of the applicable rules
”, reacted to AFP the lawyer of Alexei Kuzmitchev.
“
This decision is the triumph of law over improvisation, dictated by obscure political considerations
,” added Me Philippe Blanchetier.
The customs on their side did not wish to react or specify what this decision implied concretely for this ship, baptized "
La Petite Ourse
".
Read alsoSix months of war in Ukraine: discover the yachts confiscated from Russian oligarchs
"
La Petite Ourse
", 24 meters long, was frozen in Antibes on March 16 and would have a value of four million euros, according to a source familiar with the matter, questioned by AFP at the time of its immobilization .
On March 21, another of Alexei Kouzmitchev's yachts, "
La petite Ourse II
", 16.5 meters long and worth 1.2 million euros according to the same source familiar with the matter, had been immobilized in Cannes.
The oligarch also challenged this freeze and a decision from the Rouen Court of Appeal is expected on this subject.
Alexei Kuzmitchev "
is a major shareholder in the Alfa Group conglomerate, which includes Alfa Bank, one of Russia's largest taxpayers
", according to the European Union, which placed him on the list of people targeted by sanctions on March 15.
The almost 60-year-old "
is considered one of the most influential people in Russia, with well-established ties to the Russian president: Vladimir Putin's eldest daughter, Maria, led a charity project, Alfa-Endo, which was financed by Alfa Bank
,” the EU pointed out in a document detailing the list of those sanctioned.
