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Harry Sekulich and

Jaroslav Lukiv

Reuters

The multi-deck luxury boat valued at more than $500m (£370m) transited the Gulf waterway at the weekend

A superyacht linked to one of Russian President Vladimir Putin's key allies has sailed through the Strait of Hormuz, despite the ongoing blockade of the critical shipping channel.

The 142m-long (465 ft) multi-deck luxury boat, named Nord, is linked to sanctioned Russian billionaire Alexei Mordashov. It travelled from Dubai to Muscat, Oman, over the weekend - one of few private vessels to transit through the strait in recent months.

Iran held high-level talks with Russia this week as its standoff with the US over the strait's re-opening continues.

Approximately one-fifth of global crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies normally pass through the waterway.

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With an estimated net worth of about $37bn (£27bn), Mordashov is the richest Russian national listed by the US business magazine Forbes

Mordashov, who has close ties…