M/Y Axioma has been placed under temporary arrest by Spanish officials after entering British Gibraltar Territorial Waters (BGTW) on March 21. The order for the arrest is a result of the European Union's economic sanctions against Russia.
Axioma was granted permission to enter BGTW by the Captain of the Port, even though the vessel “was confirmed to be the subject of an arrest action by a leading international bank in the Supreme Court of Gibraltar,” according to a Her Majesty’s Government of Gibraltar press release from that day.
The release says that permission would not normally be granted because of the “ultimate beneficial ownership of the vessel” but an exception was made “in the interests of creditors with proper claims against the vessel and who seek the assistance of the Admiralty jurisdiction of the Supreme court to enforce such claims.”
The 72.5-meter yacht will remain “subject to arrest by the Admiralty Marshal until further order.”
In the week prior, the Spanish government provisionally retained three vessels in its ports: 85-meter M/YValerie, 48-meter M/Y Lady Anastasia, and 135-meter M/Y Crescent.
Axioma was delivered in 2013 by Turkish yard Dunya Yachts. Formerly known as Red Square, she features exteriors from Sterling Scott and interiors by the late Alberto Pinto. Axioma and her 20-strong crew had spent the winter on charter in the Caribbean.