The current round of US sanctions on Russia includes two new targets: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s two adult daughters, Katerina and Maria, who are suspected of concealing Putin’s riches, according to US authorities. According to information in the US sanctions package issued on Wednesday, Putin’s daughter Katerina Vladimirovna Tikhonova is a tech professional whose work supports the Russian government and defense industries.
Putin’s other daughter, Maria Vladimirovna Vorontsova, is in charge of government-funded genetics research initiatives that have received billions of dollars from the Kremlin and are personally overseen by Putin, according to the US.
“We have reason to think that Putin and many of his cronies, as well as oligarchs, hide their wealth and assets through family members who place their assets and wealth in the US financial system, as well as many other regions of the world,” a senior US administration official told reporters.
“We believe many of Putin’s assets are concealed with his family members, which is why we’re going for them,” the official said on the condition of anonymity. Putin’s daughters, their representatives, and the Kremlin could not be reached for comment immediately.
The daughter and wife of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov were also sanctioned on Wednesday. In reaction to what President Joe Biden called Russian “atrocities” in Ukraine, the US restricted Americans from investing in Russia and targeted Russian financial institutions and Kremlin leaders. Russia denies striking civilians and claims that photographs of bodies in Bucha, north of Kyiv, were faked to justify increased penalties.
Moscow claims to be conducting a “special military operation” in Ukraine to demilitarise and “denazify” the country. That is a bogus justification for Russia’s invasion, according to Ukraine and Western nations. In Russia, the size of Putin’s fortune is a touchy matter. Last year, the Kremlin denied that he had an extravagant home on the Black Sea, as opposition politician Alexei Navalny claimed in a video that went viral on YouTube.
In February, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov argued that penalties imposed on Putin were meaningless. “(Putin) is uninterested.) “Some of the sanctions make ridiculous accusations about assets,” Peskov stated. “Other than what he has declared, the president has no assets.” However, politicians in the United States believe otherwise.
“Putin and his oligarchs stow their dirty money in rule-of-law countries by purchasing mansions, mega-yachts, artwork, and other high-value assets,” US Senator Sheldon Whitehouse said a few weeks ago while introducing legislation offering cash rewards for information leading to the seizure of assets held by sanctioned Russian oligarchs.
Putin’s Daughter is Rock ‘N’ Roll Style Dancer
Putin’s daughters, whom the US suspects of assisting him in concealing his wealth, have never officially verified that he is their father, and he has refused to address inquiries about them. Katerina, an acrobatic rock ‘n’ roll dancer, has contacts and influence among the next generation of Moscow’s elite, according to a 2015 Reuters investigation.
According to the report, “Katerina, 29, introduced herself as the wife of Kirill Shamalov, son of Nikolai Shamalov, a longstanding friend of President Putin.” “Shamalov senior is a shareholder in Bank Rossiya, dubbed the “personal bank of the Russian aristocracy” by US officials. According to financial analysts who spoke to Reuters, Kirill and Katerina had corporate stakes worth roughly $2 billion as husband and wife. This was on top of other assets and property.
According to the Reuters research, Putin’s elder daughter Maria studied biology at St. Petersburg University and medicine at Moscow State University. She’s also highly involved in genetic research, which Putin has previously described as a field that will “determine the world’s future.” Maria married Dutch businessman Jorrit Joost Faassen, according to Russian and Western media reports.
She was a PhD candidate at the Endocrinology Research Centre in Moscow in 2015, pursuing a biomedical career specialised in the endocrine system, and is the co-author of a book about “idiopathic stunting” in children, according to the Reuters article. Her spouse used to work for Gazprombank, a prominent lender with close ties to Putin’s inner circle, according to the story. For their assets and holdings, no estimates were immediately available.