Russian Superyacht Sails Through Strait of Hormuz

By Ellie CookSenior Defense ReporterShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberSee more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.A superyacht linked to an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin has passed through the Strait of Hormuz, despite an Iran-enforced blockade still barring most ships from one of the world's most strategic waterways.The Nord, connected to sanctioned billionaire Alexey Mordashov, sailed from the glitzy Emirati hub of Dubai on Friday and arrived at the Omani capital, Muscat, on Sunday morning local time, according to ship tracking data.It is one of just a handful of private vessels to navigate the important waterway since the start of the U.S. and Israel's war with Iran on February 28.Tehran quickly threatened to attack any ship passing through the Strait of Hormuz it sees as unfriendly, triggering sharp volatility in global energy markets.Iran is allied with Russia and hailed the deep strategic ties between the two countries earlier this week as Tehran's top diplomat met with the Kremlin leader. window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";r.style.height=d}}}); Typically, around a fifth of the world's oil and gas passed through the strait, but shipping traffic is still a fraction of prewar levels. The U.S. later imposed its own blockade on Iranian ports, but Tehran has refused to release its grip on the waterway despite Washington repeatedly threatening punishing attacks on the country's key infrastructure.Iran briefly declared the strait open earlier this month, only to quickly reverse course. The ships making it through the waterway appear to sidle close to Iranian waters, and Iranian officials say they have started collecting toll fees from ships in the strait, which the U.S. and international shipping groups have slammed as unacceptable....At least 10 people have been killed around the strait and the Persian Gulf in the past two months and 29 ships have come under attack, according to incident reports cited by the International Maritime Organization. Iran's powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said last week it had seized two cargo ships and fired on a third vessel.More than 20,000 people aboard 1,600 ships are thought to still be stranded around the strait, highlighting the scale of disruption to commercial shipping.The Nord, the 465-foot-long superyacht, is thought to be worth over $500 million, with space for up to 36 guests alongside its own helipad, according to specialist newspaper The SuperYacht Times.It's not officially registered to Mordashov, but corporate records from last year show the extravagant vessel was listed under a Russian firm owned by Mordashov's wife in 2022, according to the Reuters news agency.Mordashov, the majority shareholder in Russian steelmaker Severstal, had a reported net worth of nearly $30 billion in 2022.Mordashov was slapped with U.S., U.K. and European Union sanctions over his connections to the Kremlin shortly after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.Russia is closely allied with Iran, and Tehran's foreign minister said during a meeting with Putin on Monday that the two countries shared a strong "strategic partnership.""As our…

This excerpt is published under fair use for community discussion. Read the full article at Newsweek.