The upper deck of the yacht Ragnar, docked in Narvik, northern Norway, March 21, 2022
The yacht Ragnar (d), docked in Narvik, northern Norway, March 21, 2022
The Ragnar yacht, believed to be owned by a Russian oligarch, docked in Narvik, northern Norway, on March 21, 2022
Norway: the ex-KGB officer, the yacht and the stroke of the fuel pump – Gallery
The quarterdeck of the yacht Ragnar, docked in Narvik, northern Norway, March 21, 2022
The upper deck of the yacht Ragnar, docked in Narvik, northern Norway, March 21, 2022
The yacht Ragnar (d), docked in Narvik, northern Norway, March 21, 2022
The Ragnar yacht, believed to be owned by a Russian oligarch, docked in Narvik, northern Norway, on March 21, 2022
Will the Ragnar finally weigh anchor? Immobilized in the Arctic, the ultra-luxurious yacht, owned by a Russian oligarch, a former KGB officer, may have found some of the fuel that the Norwegians have been refusing it for weeks in response to the war. in Ukraine.
The imposing ship detonates in the port of Narvik, a small town in northern Norway. With its inverted bow, its helicopter platform and, a bit like the matryoshka dolls, this other big boat resting on its rear deck, its dark gray silhouette contrasts with that of the cargo ships that have come to load minerals.
But it is above all the identity of its owner that makes it a local curiosity: the 68-meter yacht, which would house a whole host of other toys (amphibious craft, jet-skis, underwater robots and snowmobiles, giant toboggan , English pub…), belongs to Vladimir Strzhalkovsky, according to various specialized sites.
Having become extremely wealthy following a juicy stint at the head of the mining giant Norilsk Nickel, this 67-year-old businessman is said to have links with Vladimir Putin, with whom he served for the KGB in Saint Petersburg, when the city was still called Leningrad. .
If he is not on the list of Russians targeted by European sanctions following the invasion of Ukraine, his supposed proximity to the head of the Kremlin is horrifying.
When the Ragnar needed to refuel in Narvik where she had stopped on February 15, no one there wanted to sell her fuel.
– “Let them row” –
“I have no sympathy for the conduct of the Russians in Ukraine. Why should we help them?” argued Sven Holmlund, director of one of the local suppliers.
“Let them row home. Or that they hoist the sails,” he told Norwegian channel NRK.
Unable to return to its home port in Malta, the yacht has been ordered to remain docked for five weeks now.
There, he saw the NATO warships passing by participating in major military maneuvers, exercise Cold Response 2022, which is currently taking place in Norway. This week, the Russian oligarch’s ship even shared its pontoon with… the Italian aircraft carrier Giuseppe Garibaldi.
The captain of the yacht, a former Royal Marine, has lost his British composure.
In a note taped to the port, Rob Lankaster said he was “very disappointed with the double standards” of his Norwegian hosts who agreed to supply Russian trawlers but not the yacht he commanded, at the head of a crew entirely Western, and of which he claims not to know the owner.
According to the Superyacht fan site, the Ragnar went on sale for 69.5 million euros in 2021. But there is no indication that it has changed hands.
– Cast off on Tuesday? –
The case embarrasses the Norwegian authorities who have aligned themselves with almost all the sanctions adopted by the European Union (EU) but who are generally reluctant to irritate their powerful neighbor Russia.
No question of seizing the yacht as France and Italy have done since Mr. Strzhalkovsky is not among the sanctioned personalities.
Without wanting to openly encourage suppliers to change their position, the Norwegian Minister of Fisheries, Bjørnar Skjæran, seemed to send signals in this direction.
“We can all agree that the best thing today would be for the yacht to be able to continue on its way,” he told NRK.
According to the chain, a supplier has finally agreed to sell 300,000 liters of diesel, which would allow equipment to be departed on Tuesday.
In the port of Narvik, a tanker is actually waiting near the Ragnar and the crew of the boat, which would have 16 members, seems to be in full preparation, noted AFP.
But tongues are hardly loosened.
Only a Briton, who seems to hold managerial positions, agrees to answer a few questions laconically.
A Tuesday departure? At first no. Why? Obscure fuel filling problems. Impossible to find out more.
“This whole situation is absurd,” he says.
AFP
