Putin-linked superyacht turns on AIS for first time in nearly four years and passes through Denmark Straits (video)

The superyacht Graceful, which international media associates with Vladimir Putin, has been spotted off the coast of Denmark for the first time in almost four years.

This is reported by the DR publication.

The superyacht Graceful, which international media, including Forbes, call the personal yacht of Russian President Vladimir Putin, passed through the territorial waters of Denmark, accompanied by Russian warships.

The yacht was accompanied by a Russian Navy destroyer and a patrol ship. The movement of the Russian convoy was monitored by the Danish Navy and the German Coast Guard. At the time of its passage near Denmark, the convoy was accompanied by the Danish patrol ship P521 Freja.

On the night of Monday, June 29, Graceful passed through the Great Belt Strait, in the morning – past the island of Anholt, and in the afternoon headed to the area of ​​Cape Skagen.

As DR notes, the yacht’s passage is unusual because its Automatic Identification System (AIS) has been turned off since August 30, 2022, shortly after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Since then, the vessel has been virtually untracked, although it has been spotted in St. Petersburg on several occasions.

The publication notes that the yacht’s route is confirmed by data from international ship tracking services, as well as photos taken by spotters off the Danish coast.

USM previously reported that Putin called the detention of the Russian “shadow fleet” vessels “illegal actions.”