When Roman Abramovich effectively became persona non grata in his adoptive country, the UK, when his name was put on the sanctions list, he made his way to Israel, Turkey, where he holds real estate and, as of the time of press, is still welcome. Turkey has not joined in on the sanctions against Russia for the invasion of Ukraine, so Abramovich also brought Solaris here on March 21.
According to the Kyiv Independent, the superyacht docked in the port of Bodrum, a resort in the Aegean Sea. The welcome committee included a group of yachtsmen from Odesa, a Black Sea city currently under heavy Russian fire, onboard a motorized boat, trying to prevent Solaris from docking. There’s a video of the encounter in the tweet available at the bottom of the page.
As you can see, the protesters carried the Ukrainian flag with the words “No War” written on it. It wouldn’t be too far-fetched to conclude that they were protesting against Russia’s invasion of their country, and specifically Abramovich’s indirect involvement in it. As one of Russia’s richest men, Abramovich is close to Putin, is said to have “privileged access” to him, and is believed to have financed the war effort, whether directly or indirectly.
As courageous as the protest was – it does take guts to position a small dinghy in front of a gigantic 460-foot (140-meter) eight-decker – it did not have any impact whatsoever on the final destination of Solaris. A police boat showed up and got the dinghy to move out of the way, and the superyacht was able to dock without further interruption.
No word yet on whether Abramovich was onboard the superyacht.
A group of Ukrainians on a small boat tries to block Solaris, a yacht belonging to Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, from docking in Bodrum, Turkey, on March 21.
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) March 21, 2022
Photo: Irina Demiroglu/Facebook. pic.twitter.com/LyC8fjpdb9
???????????????? | Un grupo de jóvenes ucranianos, miembros de un club de navegantes, intentó impedir que el yate del oligarca ruso Roman Abramovich atracara en el puerto de Bodrum, Turquía. El yate atracó solo con la ayuda de la policía. pic.twitter.com/SCJMyroalk
— Alerta Mundial (@AIertaMundiaI) March 21, 2022