Superyacht belonging to ex-KGB officer Sergey Chemezov is seized by Spain

Spain has seized its first oligarch-owned super yacht as western countries continue tightening the noose on Vladimir Putin's inner circle.

Valerie, a £140million vessel that ultimately belongs to to ex-KGB officer Sergey Chemezov, has been impounded in Barcelona where it has been undergoing repairs.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced the move on Monday, while promising that 'more would come'.

Sanchez, leader of Spain's left-wing PSOE party, as a 'temporary immobilisation.'

He said during his interview on Spanish national TV station La Sexta: 'Today we seized - the technical term is provisionally immobilised - a yacht belonging to one of the principal oligarchs.

'There will be more. We have to act forcefully and firmly against Vladimir Putin, his regime and his oligarchs, who have enriched themselves in a system of corruption by oppressing the Russian people.'

He did not name the vessel but well-placed sources identified it as Valerie, which Chemezov owns via his stepdaughter - Anastasia Ignatova.

Sailing under the flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the vessel is registered to Ignatova, through a the British Virgin Islands company, according to a 2021 article published in the Pandora Papers information leak.

Chemezov is a former high-ranking general who befriended Putin while the pair were stationed in Soviet East Germany together, working for the KGB.

He enriched himself on the basis of his personal connections to Putin after the latter became Russian president in 2001.

In 2007, Putin appointed Chemezov as the head of defence and technology conglomerate Rostec which is worth tens of billions of dollars.

Solaris, a 460ft super yacht belonging to Roman Abramovich, was also being repaired at the same Barcelona shipyard as the Valerie until just a few days ago.

But the £420million vessel hurriedly departed for the 'safe haven' port of Montenegro where it docked at the weekend, just before sanctions hit.