Снег, нижнее белье и медицинский мусор
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03.10.2024
September 4, 2024
Succession
The Secret Lives of Vladimir Putin’s Sons
The sons of Vladimir Putin and Alina Kabaeva, Ivan Putin and Vladimir Putin Jr., live in isolation at various residences, traveling by yachts and business jets, with their daily needs managed by companies owned by friends of the Russian leader. They are protected by FSO officers, accompanied round-the-clock by nannies, governesses, and professional trainers. The brothers have little interaction with their peers and rarely see their parents, but they cherish the rare moments they spend with their father. The Dossier Center provides an inside look into the lives of the most secretive children in Russia.
«Thank you, guys! Thank you, kids! I know you were very anxious. But you did great. You are our future!» Alina Kabaeva congratulated participants at the «Alina-2023» rhythmic gymnastics festival. As she and the other athletes sang the farewell song, one of her children watched her attentively from the audience. When the Olympic champion left the stage, the child joined her, and they left together. This was her son Ivan, one of the two most secretive children in Russia. The other child is his younger brother Vladimir, who at that time did not yet accompany his mother to such events.
These children cannot be found in state databases; since infancy, they have had the kind of cover documents typically made for spies and people under state protection. Only close relatives know their birthdates. They do not fly on regular flights and have their own aircraft. They do not attend kindergarten or school; instead, they have private tutors. They live in residences guarded by the FSO, travel on yachts, and ride in armored trains, with minimal interaction with peers and rare visits from their father. They are the sons of Vladimir Putin.
While working on this material, the Dossier Center found several dozen photographs of Vladimir Putin’s eldest son. For ethical reasons, the Dossier Center does not publish these images or other details that could help identify the child. Ivan Putin is a minor and is not responsible for the actions of his parents, and his appearance alone does not constitute public interest.
Chapter I. Lugano – Moscow
«When the war began, the internet was flooded with messages like ‘Putin has three children with Kabaeva.’ No, no, and no. All the media were wrong, except for a Swiss newspaper. They have two sons says a source from the Dossier Center. The daily life of the president’s family is managed by dozens of people: drivers, bodyguards, teachers, cooks, pilots, trainers, waiters, assistants, and many others. The Dossier Center’s source is one of them. He lives in the residences, often sees the head of state’s children (although he does not interact with them daily) and agreed to share his story under conditions of anonymity. The Dossier Center verified his background and confirmed that he does indeed work for Vladimir Putin’s family. The details of his account were corroborated using open sources, including social media posts, as well as bank statements and data from state databases.
The newspaper mentioned by the source is Sonntags Zeitung. In May 2022, the publication reported that Putin and Kabaeva have two children, noting for the first time that a Swiss gynecologist of Russian origin assisted the Olympic champion with her pregnancies (the article did not mention her name).
The relationship between Putin and Kabaeva, like the entire private life of the Russian president, is one of the state’s most closely guarded secrets. Officially, Vladimir Putin married Lyudmila Shkrebneva in 1983 (she took her husband’s surname after marriage), and the couple divorced almost 30 years later. «All my activities, all my work is connected with publicity, with absolute publicity. Some people like it, some don’t. But there are people who are completely incompatible with it. Lyudmila Alexandrovna has ‘stood watch’,» Putin said at the time. The couple rarely appeared together in public, but in June 2013, they attended the ballet «Esmeralda» at the State Kremlin Palace, and after the performance gave an interview to the Rossiya 24 TV channel. With a slightly confused smile, Lyudmila Putin confirmed: «Our marriage is over because we hardly see each other. Vladimir Vladimirovich is completely absorbed in his work. Our children have grown up. They live their own lives. In general, it turned out that each of us has our own life.»
The children Lyudmila referred to are Maria Vorontsova and Katerina Tikhonova. However, as a family, they appear only in a few biographical publications, such as the book «First Person», published in 2000. Subsequently, Putin did not mention them by name when answering press questions, referring to them simply as «women”, and details of their lives became known through document leaks and journalistic work.
The head of state also could not hide his second family. In 2008, Moskovsky Korrespondent × reported that preparations for the wedding of Alina Kabaeva and Vladimir Putin were underway in St. Petersburg. «Putin has been divorced and free from family ties for two months”, the media outlet wrote, citing a source. «I have always had a negative attitude toward those who, with a runny nose and their erotic fantasies, interfere in other people’s lives”, Putin responded. Soon afterwards, the newspaper was shut down.
It is not known exactly when Putin and Kabaeva’s relationship began, but in March 2008, Kabaeva appeared on the show 100 Questions for an Adult × , revealing that she had already met her ideal man (without naming him), and unexpectedly gave a detailed answer to the question of whether she could take a husband away from his family: «If there are already problems in the family and the man is looking at another woman and communicating with another woman instead of his wife, then the problem is already there. Therefore, nothing good can come out of the family.» Two months later, Kabaeva flew to Sochi on the business jet of President Putin’s friend Gennady Timchenko. Since at least 2011, the Olympic champion has not hidden her engagement ring, and around the same time, she, her mother, sister, and grandmother started receiving expensive real estate as gifts from friends of the head of state.
In 2014, Kabaeva traveled three times from Sochi to Lugano. Flight data provided by the Dossier Center came from three unrelated sources with access to airline ticket databases. × During her last trip in October, she was accompanied by her mother, Lyubov Kabaeva, and a few friends: Elizaveta Molchanova, the wife of the founder of the LSR Group, and Elena Grinevich and her husband, the businessman Vitaly Mashitsky, . It is not known if Grinevich and Mashitsky’s relationship is officially registered, but the couple have two children and they appear together at social events and children’s parties, as confirmed by the Dossier Center after examining their publicly available photos and videos, as well as data from Russian databases; Alina Kabaeva is godmother to at least Grinevich’s eldest child, according to the athlete herself. × Also on board was Natalya Thiebaud, the gynecologist from the Swiss clinic Sant’Anna, located in Lugano.
Kabaeva gave birth to a son in this hospital in the spring of 2015. In 2018, she again traveled to Switzerland, presumably for a check-up during pregnancy, and in the spring of 2019, Thiebaud came to Moscow to assist Kabaeva with the birth of her second child, also a boy. A close acquaintance of the doctor told Sonntags Zeitung that the athlete’s children are from Vladimir Putin. The doctor emigrated to Switzerland more than 30 years ago, took her husband’s surname, and changed her citizenship. «But she maintained a trusting relationship with Putin,» claimed the source.
Natalya Thiebaud passed away on February 24, 2023. In a farewell message published by her partner, lawyer Giorgio Grandini, it was stated that Thiebaud was born in 1959, her maiden name was Kondratyeva, and she lived in St. Petersburg.
On each occasion, the decision on where the births would take place was made by the president himself, according to a businessman who worked with one of the head of state’s friends. In 2015, it seemed that having the child born in Switzerland would help keep the birth hidden from prying eyes. Four years later, Putin was equally confident that the necessary level of secrecy could only be ensured in Moscow. Although each time the birth of the children became known to the press, the Russian leader did not change his approach thereafter. His family is practically confined to their mansions, leaving only to move to another residence. The situation worsened with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chapter II. «Do Not Leave the Territory»
«The family lives in isolation,» reads an announcement on the website of the English Nanny agency. The announcement was available in February 2024, and a copy is held by the Dossier Center. × The company recruits staff for wealthy families in Russia, including hiring native language speakers. Among their clients are small business owners and oligarchs from Russia’s Forbes list. This particular announcement, however, offers a position in a very special family: the president’s.
One could literally walk in off the street to join Vladimir Putin’s household: the vacancy was posted publicly, and anyone could apply. Thus, in early 2024, the family was looking for a live-in English teacher for two boys aged four and eight. This age corresponds to the birth dates of Putin’s children—spring 2015 and spring 2019. × The job entails working five days a week, for a total of 60 hours. Responsibilities include «teaching other subjects» and accompanying them on trips. The salary is €7,700 per month. The agency specifies that it has long been cooperating with this family and has already found several English and German teachers for them.
This announcement differs from the usual job postings on the English Nanny website; and not simply because of the generous pay.
— Preference is given to candidates with a South African passport.
— The potential employee must be prepared to undergo medical tests within the first two weeks of work.
— It is forbidden to leave the territory where the family lives.
From time to time the announcement disappears from the site and is then reposted, the only change being the age of the children. The family constantly needs new teachers; staff turnover is high because, as a source from the service staff says, “it’s not easy to get along with the family”. Moreover, few foreigners want to work in Russia, especially after the start of the war, and many are put off by the strict isolation.
«The workload was heavy on the entire staff. Work schedules were reorganized. Our employees didn’t go home for long periods. They lived at Novo-Ogaryovo for weeks,» said Oleg Makhalin, an officer of the president’s security service (SBP) of the FSO, describing the work during the pandemic. This was shared in a film with the working title «Our Service,» commissioned by the «Tainitsky Garden» fund in 2021 to mark the 30th anniversary of the SBP. The fund was founded by state security veterans, including from the 9th Directorate of the USSR KGB, which guarded the country’s leaders. The film was produced by Saida Medvedeva’s studio, which also made the film «President» for the 15th anniversary of Putin’s rule. Filming took place at the president’s residence in Novo-Ogaryovo. The film about the FSO was likely intended for a small audience, as it was never aired on television. The Dossier Center has transcripts of FSO employee interviews, provided by a source involved in the film’s production.
Many governesses have worked for the family, and finding new candidates is increasingly difficult, so English teachers are now recruited from various English-speaking countries, including South Africa. Another reason for this choice is geopolitical, according to a source from the service staff: there is a general mistrust of foreigners, but South Africa is perceived as a country friendly to Russia.
Regardless of how a candidate learns about the vacancy, through acquaintances or the agency, the main selection stage is a video interview with the family’s assistant. This is followed by a thorough medical examination and a two-week quarantine, which takes place at the «Igora» resort in the Leningrad region or directly at Putin’s residences in Valdai or Sochi. Both «Igora» and the Valdai complex are formally registered to entities associated with Putin’s friend Yuri Kovalchuk, according to EGRUL and EGRN data. Putin’s main Sochi residence, «Bocharov Ruchey,» is state-owned. ×
Alina Kabaeva rarely makes public appearances, other than at the rhythmic gymnastics tournaments she organizes. However, in September 2016, the Olympic champion attended the show of her friend and well-known athlete, Alexey Nemov, accompanied by two boys. Although these boys couldn’t have been Kabaeva’s children based on their ages, the photos still sparked rumors. One of the children is her godson, the son of her friend (and former gymnast), Elena Grinevich. The other is a distant relative, the son of Kabaeva’s cousin, Olesya Fedina. He was born in 2008, studied Japanese, composed rap, and played the saxophone, according to his social media. For at least the past two years, he has been a cadet at the Nakhimov Naval School in Sevastopol.
Chapter III. Ivan Vladimirovich and Vladimir Vladimirovich (Junior)
«These modern Western cartoons, everything is shooting, jumping, running, after half an hour your head will already be falling off from this film. How do kids even endure it? Our Soviet cartoons, of course, are of a completely different quality: naturally, their emotional and aesthetic impact on a developing person is completely different,» Putin said in January 2024. However, he couldn’t shield his children from Western influence. His older son Ivan prefers Disney cartoons and, much to his parents’ displeasure, plays by pretending to be their characters. This information was shared with «Dossier» by a source from the service staff. × Ivan mostly plays alone or with the adults who are constantly with Putin’s sons. They see their parents only late in the evening and their peers mostly during holidays.
Both when in Valdai and when traveling, the children and service staff live nearby. The sons stay in the main house with their parents, while the governesses and trainers reside in separate buildings with special structures designated for classes, all within walking distance. At Valdai, the path from the main house to the educational facilities takes no more than 20-25 minutes, less in other residences. × However, no one walks: the brothers have their own cars with drivers, and teachers and staff have separate vehicles. Moreover, at Valdai, some staff members are prohibited from walking around the premises; all movements are by vehicle only.
The children are brought to their teachers and nannies between 8–9 a.m., and they all have breakfast together.
This information was shared with «Dossier» by a source from the service staff. ×
A few years ago, the youngest child was cared for only by nannies, but now he also has governesses. There are four nannies, some of whom were previously cleaners at the Valdai residence and live in a nearby settlement. *(“Dossier” obtained geolocation data of devices recorded in the residence and confirmed that some residents of the town of Valdai often frequent the secured area.)* The nannies worked in pairs for two weeks at a time, living with the family, then went home to be replaced by the other two nannies. The daytime shifts are 12 hours long. Unsurprisingly with such a workload, as the youngest child grew up, the nannies began to gradually shift their duties to the governesses, and eventually, the teachers started looking after both children.
After breakfast, there are classes lasting 30-45 minutes, followed by playtime. The children at Valdai have access to two ponies, rabbits, and a St. Bernard dog, cared for by two FSO dog handlers. However, the dog is not a service animal and lives with the family. Among their toys is an extensive collection of Lego sets and an iPad, used not only for games but also for video lessons. Around noon, the children eat, then take a nap, and after waking up, there are lessons and sports. After 8 p.m., drivers pick up the children, and when they return home they go to sleep almost immediately.
The brothers’ lifestyle mirrors their father’s. They have personal chefs who prepare separate dishes for them. Like Vladimir Putin, his sons have their own mugs and drink only from them. Security guards, officers from the president’s security service (SBP), part of the main FSO division, are always close to the children. «Dossier» obtained a photo of one of the bodyguards, who turned out to be Putin’s aide, Vitaly Kemenov, who has accompanied the head of state for many years.
By examining the geolocation data of devices recorded in the residence, “Dossier” confirmed that FSO employees do indeed work at Valdai. Among these devices were mobile phones that also connected to networks in Novo-Ogaryovo, the Kremlin, and FSB and FSO facilities. ×
However, security at Valdai is not as stringent as one might think. On days when Putin is not in residence, the security staff feel slightly more relaxed, according to a service staff source. For example, one can enter the territory without showing documents. Staff members are not deprived of their mobile phones, and personal belongings may not be checked when moving around.
“All the food is prepared only by us,” said Vladimir, a cook from the president’s FSO security service, in the film «Our Service.» “And of course, before we serve anything on the plate, we taste everything. … There is a huge service that checks all the products purchased. They are tested on devices. For all leisure activities, for hunting, fishing, we also go out. And there are moments when the president catches [a fish] and says, ‘I want to cook this fish for dinner.’ We call certain people – doctors who specialize in inspections. There are mobile laboratories, there are express tests that show if there are poisons, mercury excess, or any intestinal issues.”
Sometimes other children appear at the residence. These are often the children of friends of Kabaeva, who, like everyone else, have to spend two weeks in quarantine. They usually visit Valdai during holidays, but a «Dossier» source has seen some children come more frequently. Another witness to Putin’s family life is Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. In February 2021, he skied with Vladimir Putin in Sochi. At that time, Kabaeva and her sons were staying in Krasnaya Polyana, according to a «Dossier» source. In July 2023, the family visited the newly built Naval Glory Museum in Kronstadt, where Lukashenko was also present.
But no activities or games can possibly compare with the evenings when the children are with their father. This is a special time, and the elder son always shares his joy with those around him. For example, he talked about how his father brought him a toy that he supposedly had a hard time finding and buying. In the evenings, Putin plays hockey with his elder son (a hockey rink was built at Valdai for this purpose). There are also training sessions without the president, during which someone from the service staff joins the team. However, if a game involving the head of state is scheduled, only the father, Ivan, and FSO staff are on the ice. The Putins are always on the same team. Sometimes Kabaeva comes to watch the match, but she is not visible from the rink, avoiding the staff and observing from a separate box hidden behind opaque glass. Parents also watch performances prepared by teachers with the children for major holidays. However, staff have seen in the hall the Olympic champion’s sister, Leysan Kabaeva, and their mother, Lyubov Kabaeva.
Chapter IV. Special Purpose Medical Center
«My Medical Center» (MMC) is not the largest network of private clinics in Russia, but probably the most important. Since 2016, MMC has treated Wagner Group fighters injured in Syria, Libya, and the war in Ukraine. This clinic, located on Malaya Konyushennaya Street in the center of St. Petersburg, also looks after many of Vladimir Putin’s friends and acquaintances, including members of the «Ozero» cooperative and executives from the «Russia» bank, as well as escort girls, as reported by RFE/RL.
MMC was owned by the insurance company Sogaz, controlled by the president’s inner circle, primarily Yuri Kovalchuk, co-owner of «Russia» bank. But since the summer of 2022, four individuals have become the new owners of MMC, according to reports:
— Former MMC CEO Vladislav Baranov and chief physician Andrey Obrezan. Both are co-founders of the «NOMEKO» company, which is building Sogaz’s multifunctional medical complex in the Leningrad region; among NOMEKO’s owners is Putin’s daughter Maria Vorontsova.
— Current MMC CEO Inga Khabalaeva.
— Stanislav Andreyev, who owns the real estate companies «Vesta» and «Ent.» Both entities are closely associated with Yuri Kovalchuk and his partners from «Russia» bank.
Friends of the president, such as Gennady Timchenko, do indeed receive treatment at the center, as «Dossier» confirmed by examining the clinic’s internal documents. The documents were provided by two unrelated «Dossier» sources. × However, among the names mentioned in the company’s materials are foreigners with very high salaries. These are the teachers of Vladimir Putin’s children. Why the governesses were registered specifically through MMC is unknown. It is possible that Putin’s circle simply decided to use an already established company dealing with sensitive issues instead of creating a new one. Only foreigners are registered through the clinic; Russian citizens receive their salaries from other companies.
Since 2020, at least 10 foreign teachers have signed contracts with MMC. “Dossier” confirmed that they are indeed teachers by reviewing their social media and other open sources. × Formally, they were contracted as translators, but each receives significantly more than a qualified linguist could expect. A copy of the agreement was found in the company’s internal documents by “Dossier.” × Salaries start at 330,000 rubles and go up to 1.2 million rubles per month.
The most successful is Sofia Bozic, who earned 25.3 million rubles over a little more than the last four years (an average of 516,000 rubles per month). Bozic is a German teacher for Putin’s children, according to a “Dossier” source from the service staff. She was born in 1992, is a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina, lived in Austria, studied at the University of Graz, and interned at RSUH. “Dossier” reviewed her passport details, provided by a source with access to state databases. × She has lived in Russia since at least 2017 (“Dossier” found her in photos from a film screening at the Serbian embassy in Moscow in February 2017). Bozic likely enjoys considerable trust from Putin’s family, as she has worked longer than her colleagues and received a loan of nearly 233.8 million rubles from MMC in July 2023.
Several English and German teachers always work with the children. Besides South African citizens, whom the family prefers to hire since the war started, contracts have also been signed with British and New Zealand citizens. They are mentioned in MMC’s internal documents in “Dossier’s” possession. × Foreign language teachers are needed not only for educating the brothers. The primary workload falls on the governesses, who spend almost the entire day with the children. They get a break when the children go to sports, chess, or music.
The parents might assume that their children will follow in their mother’s footsteps and become professional athletes. Almost every residence has a sports complex with a gym and a swimming pool, and sometimes a hockey rink. The children are coached by personal swimming and gymnastics trainers. For example, the eldest son is trained by a former national gymnastics team member. “Dossier” has photos of their training sessions. × However, Ivan Putin’s achievements are modest. His peers, with whom he periodically competes, already noticeably surpass him physically and receive higher scores from the judges. *(“Dossier” contacted Sofia Bozic and the coach, but they did not respond to messages on several messengers and blocked the “Dossier” correspondent; the coach also restricted access to his Instagram account.)*
Although the parents often have opposing views on what their children should learn, they do not intend to abandon homeschooling. According to a “Dossier” source, in early 2024, staff discussed sending Ivan Putin to the Sochi lyceum “Sirius,” which is part of the educational center created by the “Talent and Success” foundation. Among the foundation’s founders is the president’s friend, cellist Sergei Roldugin. × However, this has not yet happened, probably for security reasons.
Teachers and trainers rarely interact directly with the family, says a “Dossier” source. If the teachers need anything, they communicate with the family’s assistants. The assistants convey messages from the parents: these can be both thanks for the work done and suggestions about the learning process. The messages have two authors. Most often, about once a week, the governesses receive messages from Olesya. Olesya pretends to be the children’s mother and personally meets the governesses when they are hired. In reality, she is the cousin of the real mother, Alina Kabaeva. Much less frequently, several times a year, messages come from the family. The source believes these come from Vladimir Putin himself.
Chapter V. Family Matters
On May 1, 2016, Kabaeva’s cousin, Ekaterina Golovacheva, registered on MyHeritage, a popular service that allows users to create a family tree. Golovacheva entered basic information about her relatives but quickly lost interest and never returned to the site. This is evident from MyHeritage data; Golovacheva used her photo and personal email for registration, as found by the “Dossier” center. × The family connection scheme remained publicly accessible. *(“Dossier” verified information from Golovacheva’s profile and confirmed the family tree’s accuracy using publicly available leaks from Russian state databases and studying the social networks of Golovacheva’s relatives; “Dossier” also received information from a source with access to the Unified State Register of Civil Status Records.)*
The Olympic champion’s cousins were born in Uzbekistan, moved to the village of Nikolagors in the Vladimir region of Russia, where their grandmother, Anna Zatsepilina, lived, and are now formally listed in companies owned by Putin’s friends, such as Sogaz, Divnomorye, and Axis Investments. “Divnomorye” owns the “Usadba Divnomorskoye” winery, founded by the son of Putin’s childhood friend, Vladimir Kolbin. “Axis Investments” owns the “Krinitsa” winery, whose legal entity owner is the non-profit partnership “Development of Agricultural Initiatives” by Gennady Timchenko and Vladimir Kolbin. The Project and Insider reported on it. × In reality, they help the gymnast with family affairs. For instance, Golovacheva, who studied law, handles financial matters, agrees on staff payments, and arranges new employees, while Olesya Fedina is the stand-in “mother” who communicates with the governesses and nannies, pretending Kabaeva’s sons are her children. However, a “Dossier” source from the service staff says the subterfuge is often given away: for example, if the eldest son plays hockey or participates in a performance and Olesya Fedina is watching, after the match or show, the child runs not to her but to a box hidden behind opaque glass where the real mother sits.
The sisters often accompany Kabaeva on trips, confirmed by “Dossier” after studying data on tickets purchased in the gymnast’s name. For example, they frequently traveled on the “Sapsan” train to Ugolovka and Okulovka stations, the closest stops to the Valdai residence. Kabaeva and her mother bought at least 152 tickets on this route since 2015. × Kabaeva’s personal assistants, Elena Erhan, Anna Nazarova, her sister Yulia Nazarova, and Sofia Bozik (not to be confused with Kabaeva’s children’s German teacher Sofia Bozic) often travel with her. Sofia Bozik worked as an English teacher at the Skolkovo International Gymnasium and the Gazprom School, then moved to the National Media Group. Kabaeva chairs the board of directors at NMG. ×
Slightly less frequently, Kabaeva travels with the chair of the board of Bank “Russia”, Tatiana Polinko; the daughter of the former first deputy director of the FSO, Alexander Belyakov, Elizaveta; and rhythmic gymnasts Olga Kapranova and Natalia Belugina. The athletes organize the “Alina” and “Heavenly Grace” festivals, and Belugina sometimes trains Putin’s elder son (photos of their joint training are in “Dossier’s” possession). Kabaeva’s mother, Lyubov Kabaeva, traveled with Svetlana Polyakova, the mistress of Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. × However, not all Kabaeva’s movements can be tracked through state databases. The Olympic champion has her fleet, of both aircraft and yachts, and data on these trips are rarely displayed anywhere.
Chapter VI. The Shadow Fleet
The yacht appeared on the radar for only 36 minutes. Most of the vessels associated with Putin have gone silent in recent years, turning off their location-transmitting equipment (AIS). The Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, first adopted after the Titanic disaster, stipulates that such devices must always be operational unless the captain decides the location information poses a safety threat.
The Russian leader’s ships, however, do not sail in waters where there is a risk of encountering pirates, and so AIS is turned off for reasons of secrecy. But on August 8, 2023, one of the vessels, the 32-meter yacht Nega, unexpectedly broke its silence. At 11:17 local time, the systems came to life and began transmitting course data. The Nega was moving at speeds of up to 12 knots (just over 22 km/h) along the Svir River from Lake Ladoga to Lake Onega. This follows from MarineTraffic data. × At 11:53, when the ship was near the village of Uslanka, AIS was just as suddenly turned off. It is not known whether the crew intentionally activated the equipment or someone on board pressed the wrong button by mistake.
In the summer of 2023, the Nega accompanied the 84-meter yacht Graceful, on which Kabaeva and her two children were traveling, according to a source from “Dossier.” In total, three vessels were allocated for them. The Graceful was the largest, where the athlete and her children lived, and where Putin himself joined them briefly. The second yacht was slightly smaller; the children were transported to it every morning around 8 AM. They had lessons with their teachers on board and returned to the Graceful in the evening around 10 PM. The third yacht was the smallest, used exclusively by the staff. The vessels maintained a distance from each other to avoid attracting attention but stayed close enough to transfer the children between ships using a small boat.
The entire fleet occasionally went on voyages. For instance, at the end of July 2023 and beginning of August, the ships circled the Gulf of Finland, “sightseeing” (the family also visited a museum in Kronstadt around this time), after which Kabaeva and the children continued their journey deeper into Russia. The trip aimed to visit the Valaam and Konevets Monasteries on Lake Ladoga and dock at Putin’s residence in Karelia.
“Dossier” obtained a photo taken on board one of the yachts during the voyage and was able to geolocate it. The photo shows the Lower Svir Lock near the hydroelectric power station on the Svir River, on the route from Lake Onega to Lake Ladoga. “Dossier” also confirmed that the Graceful was not in the port of St. Petersburg during the trip dates: after its annual winter repairs in Kaliningrad, the ship arrived in St. Petersburg in May 2023 and docked at the Marine Facade port, but left its usual mooring at the end of July and beginning of August, according to satellite images. Finally, travel photos were published on Instagram by the senior son’s coach. The account is now private, but “Dossier” preserved all the photos. × In the third week of July, the coach posted several photos with geotags including “Valaam,” “Ladoga Skerries,” “Spaso-Preobrazhensky Valaam Monastery,” “Lakhdenpohja,” “Konevets Island,” and “Lake Ladoga.”
The coach detailed the trip on Lake Ladoga on his Instagram account. Source: Dossier Center
In two photos, the coach is seen on board a sailing ship. This same sailing ship was identified by “Dossier” in a profile picture used by one of the German teachers in a post on Messenger. It is the brig “Rossiya”, a symbol of the graduation celebration “Scarlet Sails,” which is held annually in St. Petersburg (the sails are white at other times). The ship is owned by the company “Unison,” which purchased a Brizo 46 boat for the presidential fleet and owns a dock in Lomonosov used by several of Putin’s yachts.
The brig was indeed in Lake Ladoga in July 2023. According to MarineTraffic data, the ship departed from the dock in Priozersk and on July 20 moved to a bay near the “Dacha Wintera” hotel, owned by companies affiliated with Yuri Kovalchuk, and on July 24 anchored near Valaam Island. It is not known whether Putin’s children were on board or if this was a trip organized solely for the teachers as a reward for their work.
The trip ended on August 8, when Alina Kabaeva and her children docked in Priozersk, spent the night at the Igora ski resort, and left for Pulkovo Airport the next day. The Igora resort has a protected FSO mansion owned by the company “Zagorodnaya Sreda,” which is part of Yuri Kovalchuk’s legal entities. × From there, they likely flew by helicopter back to Valdai.
The family spends most of the year in Valdai, where they also celebrate the New Year. Their schedule changes little from year to year. In February-March, they ski in Sochi, relocating to Achipse during this time. This is probably Putin’s second favorite residence, as reported to “Dossier” by a former FSO officer, Gleb Karakulov. In July-August, they take trips on the yachts: these used to be long sea voyages but due to the war have been limited to safe waters, such as the Gulf of Finland, the Black Sea coast, and northern lakes. In 2024, it is likely that such a voyage occurred in mid-July: the Graceful left the port of St. Petersburg around this time, according to satellite images, and the Nega was on the Svir River towards Lake Ladoga on July 15 according to MarineTraffic data × . Putin met with Alexander Lukashenko in the Valaam Monastery at the end of July.
In August, the family stays in Crimea, at the state dacha No. 6 in the village of Oliva, and might move to Sochi in the fall, to the “Bocharov Ruchey” residence.
The family does not use the famous palace on Cape Idokopas as it is still under renovation. However, “Dossier” confirmed that, based on geolocation data of devices, the renovation is monitored by the family’s assistants. By tracking the movements of one assistant’s mobile phone, “Dossier” discovered that en route from the palace, the assistant stopped at a guarded complex with a four-meter fence near Gelendzhik Airport. The buildings are owned by the company “Studio Project Design,” with the land leased for 49 years by a legal entity. The company belongs to the closed mutual fund “Industrial Prospects,” managed by “VTB Asset Management.” The complex is located on the Black Sea coast, and local residents attempted to protest against the construction restricting access to the water, but their protests were ignored.
Most trips include all teachers, who are accommodated at the residences. However, on some trips, the family travels with a limited staff ofone or two educators and a coach. Accommodating more people is challenging, such as at Putin’s residence in Karelia, where people are housed on yachts or on the armored train. A source heard that the family uses a special train, and during trips, music teacher Polina Trukhan was included. She was supposed not only to work with the elder son but also to entertain the family by playing the piano. Trukhan read the “Dossier” correspondent’s questions in Messenger but chose not to respond. ×
In addition to yachts and armored trains, the family has several planes and helicopters. A source provided “Dossier” with photos and videos taken aboard these aircraft. In two cases, the tail numbers were captured. These are aircraft RA-09609 and helicopter RA-22377. The former belongs to a Dassault Falcon 900LX business jet, owned by “Gazpromavia” and operated by the airlines “RussAir” and “Jetlet,” which are part of Yuri Kovalchuk’s group of legal entities and his partners at Bank “Rossiya.” The operating aircraft and ownership structure are detailed in the legal entities’ reports. × The airlines also lease and service:
- Two Dassault Falcon 7X business jets, one of which belongs to the special flying squad “Russia”;
- A Dassault Falcon 8X jet;
- A new Russian Tu-204;
- Two Anglo-Italian AgustaWestland AW139 helicopters;
- Two Franco-German Eurocopter EC 145 helicopters;
- Four Russian Mi-8 helicopters.
“RussAir” belongs to top managers of Yuri Kovalchuk’s structures. This is evident from 2023 reporting. × The founder of “Jetlet” is Mikhail Dukhanin, but the company shares a common domain name with Putin’s friend. The legal entity’s email address is mksmail.ru. This same address hosts 35 legal entities affiliated with Kovalchuk, including his key firms “Prime,” “Onega,” “Big House 9,” “Igora,” and others. Kovalchuk’s business empire is known for using a single domain for all organizations to conduct corporate correspondence.
The helicopter RA-22377, an Mi-8AMT model, belongs to “Transneft,” operated by the airline “Tulpar Air.” This is a subsidiary of the chemical holding TAIF, which merged with “Sibur” (co-owned by Gennady Timchenko). This entire fleet is needed to transport Putin’s relatives and service personnel, says a businessman who worked with one of the president’s friends.
On trips, the daily routine changes little: the children still spend almost the entire day with their teachers who instruct and entertain them. “That’s how very wealthy people behave: they travel around the world, but their daily routine remains the same,” shrugs a staff member from the family’s service.
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“I think if Vladimir Vladimirovich were directly involved in raising the children, they would probably be terribly spoiled because everything would be allowed. Usually, children are disciplined more by the father, who is supposed to be the one who will punish them. It makes them more disciplined. But that was impossible with us because Dad spoiled the daughters. Dad is always a joy and no punishment for them,” remembered Lyudmila Putina, speaking with journalist Oleg Blotsky for his book “Vladimir Putin. The Road to Power.” Blotsky, working on his books during Putin’s first presidential term, faced difficulties publishing the works and said that Alexei Gromov, then Putin’s press secretary, created “loud tantrums about the books, actively obstructing the dissemination of information about them on central TV channels.” Now, Blotsky’s books about Putin are extremely difficult to find, mostly existing only in private collections. ×
Putin is even more attentive to his sons than he was to his daughters. Additionally, nowadays, the family’s daily life is managed not so much by his wife as it was in the 1980s in the USSR and the GDR, but by numerous service staff from his wife’s relatives, the president’s friends, security officers, and hired personnel. None of them risk arguing with the children, so the boys are growing up believing they are exceptional. Any whim is fulfilled, and they view all the residences where they live as their personal property.
The special treatment from everyone around them only reinforces this feeling. Their teachers, security personnel, and other staff fear Putin, and he is the only one who can speak sternly to the boys. Kabaeva, according to a “Dossier” source, can also be strict and even emotional, but they take their father’s punishments seriously. It seems likely that paternal praise is their main source of pride. For example, Ivan Putin has recounted to his tutors and security guards a particularly memorable story. According to relatives, when he was born, Vladimir Putin was so happy that he exclaimed: “Hooray! Finally, a boy!”
Ilia Rozhdestvenskii,
The Dossier Center Team