Putin and the mysterious yacht Victoria: What did journalists from the Dossier Center discover?

The Dossier Center claims the Victoria is the flagship of Putin’s flotilla in the Black Sea. The yacht has been built by the Siewiernoje Maszynostroitielnoje Priedprijatije shipyard since 2005 and was scheduled for completion in 2019.

Now – according to the findings of investigative journalists – it is being repaired in the dock in the Turkish port of Tuzla near Istanbul. Victoria’s listed value in the 2019 customs declaration is $50.1 million. (almost PLN 200 million).

The oligarch handed the yacht over to Putin

Victoria – as journalists found out – was ordered by Sergei Maslov. Maslov worked at Surgutneftegaz (a Russian gas company), Lukoil and Transneft (the company responsible for the country’s oil pipeline networks). He also organized the delivery of military cargo and equipment to the Russian army in Syria. Maslov is associated with Gennady Timchenko, who is one of the oligarchs closest to Putin.

Two Dossier Center interlocutors claim that the Victoria yacht was intended for Putin. And although officially it belongs to Timchenko, informally the oligarch handed it over to Putin.

The Victoria is allegedly based in Sochi and occasionally sails to Putin’s palace on Cape Idokopas near the city of Gelendzhik.

What happens to Putin’s remaining yachts?

The Dossier Center notes that there is no direct evidence that the ship is linked to Putin. However, journalists believe that there is circumstantial evidence to believe so. A specially selected crew, the ship’s route running close to Putin’s palace, a formal owner and an extraordinary construction history.

In addition, Victoria has the same agent as the currently arrested other yacht Scheherazade. This, in turn, is currently in Italian waters under the supervision of the local authorities.

Vladimir Putin also owns the luxury yacht Graceful, which left the port of Hamburg two weeks before the start of the war in Ukraine. Bild reported then that Putin removed the yacht for fear of confiscation as part of the sanctions announced by the West.

This information was then confirmed by the BBC’s Russian service.