RICHARD KAY: Vladimir Putin's six-deck superyacht groans with obscene luxury and hideous excess

To those who recall the modest but elegant dimensions of the Royal Yacht Britannia, it is nothing less than an aberration, a monstrous floating palace built not for a queen but to one man’s towering vanity. For this is the Scheherazade, reputedly Vladimir Putin’s £500 million superyacht where each of its six decks groans with obscene luxury and hideous excess. This is the Scheherazade, reputedly Vladimir Putin ’s £500 million superyacht where each of its six decks groans with obscene luxury and hideous excess The superyacht boasts twin helipads, capable of landing Russian attack helicopters, immaculate teak decks and a highly sophisticated communication and defence system with the ability to shoot drones out of the sky The yacht has room for 18 guests in nine luxury cabins in addition to a crew of 40, residing in 20 cabins and has a royal suite, a swimming pool, a spa and a beauty salon Scheherazade, is one of the largest and most expensive superyachts in the world When thousands are dying at his hands, it seems dishonourable to celebrate the impounding in an Italian dry dock of a mere boat. Putin’s former judo sparring partner, Arkady Rotenberg, is another who has grown exceedingly rich after receiving billions of dollars in state contracts ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics hosted by Russia. Investigative journalist Catherine Belton, whose book Putin’s People revealed how the president and his gang seized control of private companies and siphoned billions from the Russian economy, puts it simply: ‘He can access the wealth of the entire country.’ Putin’s former judo sparring partner, Arkady Rotenberg, is another who has grown exceedingly rich after receiving billions of dollars in state contracts ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics hosted by Russia According to that scenario, Russia’s assets are Putin’s assets.