Ukrainian pro-Russia politician buys superyacht for $203 million

To the shock of many Ukrainians, 80 percent of whom live in poverty, one politician just bought a yacht worth about 180 million euros ($203 million), according to Ukrainian member of parliament and former independent investigative journalist Sergiy Leshchenko.

The new owner, Viktor Medvedchuk, is a Ukrainian oligarch and a chairman of the pro-Russian political organization Ukrainian Choice, which opposes joining the European Union. His daughter’s godfather is none other than Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The sale of a yacht of such dimensions and cost is a significant event among professionals in the yacht industry, and therefore the purchase could not remain unnoticed.

Leshchenko said that the father of Putin’s goddaughter wanted to buy the yacht for himself as a birthday gift.

The yacht, which was built in the Netherlands, is one of the three most expensive shipyards in the world. The cost of 1 linear meter of the yacht is 2-2.5 million euros. No one knows for sure, but experts estimate that this type of yacht costs about 180 million euros.

“For the majority of Ukrainians $180,000 or 180 million euros are the [same] figure – unimaginable. But just believe me – it’s an exorbitant cost,” Leshchenko added.