Russian fugitive tycoon Boris Berezovsky has denied reports that French authorities have seized two yachts belonging to him.
"I have no yachts in France, I have only paintings, not important ones, but I have no information that anyone has seized them. I have not been there for ten years," Berezovsky said in an interview with the Moscow-based Ekho Moskvy radio station.
The yachts, worth around $20 million, were seized at the request of the Russian prosecutors as part of an ongoing criminal investigation against him, a spokesperson for the Russian Prosecutor General's Office said on Thursday.
The French authorities have confirmed that the yachts docked off the resort town of Antibes, and other objects belonging to Berezovsky were seized at Moscow's request.
Berezovsky, who was granted political asylum by the British authorities in 2000, said he viewed the statement by the Russian Prosecutor General's Office in the context of Thursday's resolution by the European Parliament.
The resolution criticized Russia's judiciary over its lack of independence and impartiality, and expressed concern over politically motivated trials.
"[Russia's judiciary] does not respond to democratic standards and serves the interests of bandits in power," Berezovsky said, adding that the French authorities who cooperate with Moscow are either unfamiliar with the resolution or are also 'corrupt.'
Over a dozen criminal probes have been launched in Russia against Berezovsky, a one-time close associate of the late president Boris Yeltsin, including on charges of plotting to stage a coup and embezzling $13 million from a leading Russian bank.
Russia has issued multiple warrants for Berezovsky's arrest and has repeatedly demanded his extradition from Britain.
MOSCOW, February 18 (RIA Novosti)
