Vladimir Putin’s emboldened moves at sea have moved to the Middle East.
On Tuesday, the Nord, a Russian 142m-long (465 feet) superyacht, cruised through the hotly contested Strait of Hormuz despite an ongoing blockade.
The ship’s casual passage through one of the most sensitive maritime chokepoints has sharpened questions about Western resolve and shown how brazen the Kremlin is in acting at sea.
The yacht, which has been linked to sanctioned Russian steel magnate Alexei Mordashov, successfully navigated the strait despite ongoing restrictions on shipping through the vital waterway during the US-Iran conflict.
Mordashov, who has close ties to Putin, is not listed as the formal owner of the Nord; however, shipping data indicates the yacht was registered to a Russian firm owned by his wife in 2022.
The United States and European Union sanctioned the Russian billionaire following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The passage is significant. Russian-flagged Nord managed to clear the strait despite private vessels largely avoiding it because Iran has severely restricted traffic and Donald Trump announced US forces would impose a blockade on Iranian ports.
The ship’s roughly 400-mile journey from Dubai to Muscat in Oman has therefore exposed a selective enforcement of Trump’s blockade.
Emma Salisbury, a maritime security analyst, suggested that failure to intercept his yacht undermines the credibility of international sanctions.
“The Trump administration is being selective about what rules it enforces in the Gulf, to the benefit of Putin and his circle,” she said.
Since mid-April, Washington has imposed strict controls on shipping through the Gulf as part of its standoff with Iran. Traffic through the strait has dwindled from over 100 vessels a day to a fraction of that level. Against that backdrop, the sight of a $500m (£370m) luxury yacht gliding through restricted waters stands out.
While Russia is not directly involved in the Gulf standoff, its strategic alignment with Iran means Putin does have an interest in the conflict. The Russian President has publicly backed Tehran, praising its resilience and signalling that Russia would act in the region’s interests.
Vladimir Putin with Mordashov in 2006. The West and EU have sanctioned Mordashov since the start of the war in Ukraine (Photo: Alexander Nikolayev/AFP)Iran has long been a partner of Russia during its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, sharing military supplies and technologies, such as attack drones.
The US has claimed its naval blockade can be lifted for vessels of its choice. It remains unclear how the Mordashov-linked yacht was able to pass freely through the heavily monitored corridor, or whether US naval forces chose not to act. But experts have suggested this may be an indication of back channels at work.
Lars Bergqvist, a former United Nations military observer, said the voyage was symbolic.“Putin could show the world that he has a good relationship with Iran,” he said. “And Trump wouldn’t stop him either.”
Sanctions have been a key tool for retaliation or diplomatic pressure against both Russia and Iran. But sanctions depend on visible enforcement. When high-profile assets appear to slip through the net, with the indication of back-handed deals, the effectiveness of sanctions risks being diluted.
As tensions in the region continue to simmer and a fragile ceasefire between Washington and Tehran disrupts normal shipping flows, a single yacht’s voyage through the strait tells a tale of power, privilege, and the selective enforcement of the White House.
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