Suppose you are a filthy wealthy Russian oligarch and know that President Biden will seriously take your yacht away. In that case, you head to the Maldives, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean. The islands are heavily dependent on both Ukrainian and Russian tourism which brings a chillax Slavic vibe to the islands. And, best of all? No extradition treaty with the United States.
From Barrons via AFP on Aluminum tycoon Oleg Deripaska and his yacht named Clio anchoring in the capital city of the Maldives, Mala.
Multiple international sanctions have been imposed on Russia in the wake of its invasion of neighbouring Ukraine, raising the prospect of confiscation of yachts belonging to its billionaires, several of whom are close to President Vladimir Putin.
The state-run Maldives Ports Limited confirmed that the pleasure craft Clio, holding the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) registration 9312535, dropped anchor near the capital Male on Monday.
The Cayman Islands-registered vessel is owned by aluminium tycoon Oleg Deripaska, who was sanctioned by the United States in 2018.
A CNBC report said at least two other vessels owned by Russian oligarchs were heading to the Maldives, which has no extradition treaty with the United States.
Maldives Ports also confirmed to AFP that the superyacht Titan, holding IMO number 1010478 and owned by steel magnate Alexander Abramov, was anchored in Male.
According to Barrons reporting, there has been no news from the Maldive foreign ministry on the docking of sanctioned vessels.
An interesting connection to Kentucky and Mitch McConnel in Esquire Magazine. It’s all just one big circle jerk with these guys.
Just a snippet for your reading pleasure.
Two of the three votes needed to maintain the sanctions against goons like Deripaska came from senators representing a state into which his company was pumping money he'd obtained god knows where or how, and one of whom is the Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate into whose PAC Deripaska's partner dumped $3.5 million between 2015 and 2017. Oddly, one of the stories that has sunk like a stone over the past few years is the story of how much Russian ratfcking money went into Republican campaigns generally over the past few cycles.
Again, nobody knows what the ultimate sources of this money may be, but since Russia is a thoroughgoing thieves' paradise, anybody's guess is as good as anybody else's. But only a fool believes in accidents any more.