South African government has permitted a $521million vessel belonging to Alexei Mordashov to dock in its southwest port city, Cape Town.
The Superyacht belonging to Mordashov, an ally of Russian leader Vladimir Putin left Hong Kong earlier this week.
South African opposition leaders urged the government to seize the 141m-long yacht called The Nord. However, government spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya said he saw “no reason” to comply with Western sanctions.
“South Africa has no legal obligation to abide by sanctions imposed by the US and EU,” Magwenya told pressmen in Pretoria on Tuesday.
“South Africa’s obligations with respect to sanctions relate only to those that are specifically adopted by the United Nations,” Magwenya added, noting that Mordashov is not under any UN-sponsored sanctions.
Western countries imposed sanctions on more than 1,000 Russian individuals and businesses in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Like many other African countries, Ramaphosa’s government has so far avoided directly criticising Russia, abstaining in several UN votes that have expressly condemned the war. Pretoria has also called for a negotiated settlement to end the conflict.
On Monday, Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis who is a member of the opposition Democratic Alliance party tweeted: “no place in our city for accomplices to, and enablers of, Putin’s war,” urging officials to block the superyacht’s entry.
Before the war, Mordashov was Russia’s wealthiest man. The 57-year-old built a fortune of some $29.1billion through his steel and mining company Severstal.
Mordashov however faces serious issues finding international ports capable of maintaining superyachts because most are in Europe, where the vessels would be instantly seized.
South Africa is an important member of the BRICS bloc of emerging economies and has a strong foreign policy that dates back to apartheid days.
