France seized a Russian-flagged ro/ro cargo ship, Baltic Leader, on Saturday, in the English Channel, in accordance with recent sanctions put in place following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The ship was bound for St. Petersburg, Russia, but was diverted to the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer in northern France between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. (0200-0300 GMT), Captain Veronique Magnin of the French Maritime Prefecture told Reuters.

The vessel was “strongly suspected of being linked to Russian interests targeted by the sanctions,” she said.

The United States Treasury Department has issued blocking sanctions against the vessel because, according to Treasury, it was owned by a subsidiary of Russian lender Promsvyazbank, one of the Russian entities hit by U.S. and European Union sanctions.

The bank’s CEO, Pyotr Fradkov, is the son of Mikhail Fradkov, a former head of Russia’s foreign intelligence service, who also served as prime minister under Russian President Vladimir Putin. Pyotr Fradkov was himself included in the latest round of U.S. sanctions.

Promsvyazbank, in a comment sent to Reuters, said its subsidiary no longer owns the Baltic Leader, and that it was bought by a different entity before the sanctions were imposed.

We recently posted about the 83-meter yacht, Graceful, believed to be owned by Vladimir Putin, that made a hasty departure from Hamburg, Germany, bound for Russia, before finishing repairs and renovations at the Blohm and Voss shipyard. Some speculate that the move was meant to avoid confiscation or sanctions following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Thanks to Alaric Bond for contributing to this post.