The international community has been laser-focused on Russian President Vladimir Putin amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The 69-year-old leader has fought hard to prevent the media and the world from knowing much about his personal life. But five weeks into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the EU and the US floated the prospect of targeting Putin’s children with sanctions, per The Wall Street Journal.
Putin’s carefully curated macho image — he’s often photographed riding horses, lifting weights, and posing shirtless — has colored much of the public’s understanding of him. He has also made a concerted effort to shield his children from the spotlight, prompting many to question whether he even has children at all.
Putin has never publicly acknowledged his children, though media outlets have for years speculated and reported about the two daughters Putin had with his ex-wife, and even that a girlfriend may have had another daughter in 2015.
One of them, Katerina Tikhonova, appears to be building a public profile, and was seen last year speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in Russia — the country’s equivalent of Davos. But as with her earlier media appearances, nobody explicitly linked her with Putin.
Here is what we know about the lives of Putin’s secret kids.
Pat Ralph contributed reporting to previous versions of this article.
Putin had two daughters in his first marriage to former flight attendant Lyudmila Shkrebneva, to whom he was married for three decades until their divorce in 2013.
Sources: Vladimir Putin, Reuters, Business Insider
Their daughter’s names are Maria and Katerina. Maria was born in Leningrad in 1985, and Katerina was born in Germany in 1986 when the family lived there during her father’s time in the KGB.
Sources: Vladimir Putin, Reuters, Newsweek
Both girls are named after their grandmothers. Maria’s nickname is Masha and Katerina’s nickname is Katya.
Masha and Katya are common Russian shortenings for Maria and Katerina.
Sources: Vladimir Putin, Reuters, Newsweek
When the family moved to Moscow in 1996, the girls attended a German-language school. The children were reportedly removed from school when Putin became acting president, and teachers educated them at home.
Source: Newsweek
“Not all fathers are as loving with their children as he is,” Lyudmila said in a quote on Putin’s government website. “And he has always spoiled them, while I was the one who had to discipline them.”
Source: Vladimir Putin
Maria studied biology in college and went to medical school in Moscow, while Katerina majored in Asian Studies in college. Both girls attended university under false identities.
Sources: Reuters, Newsweek
Maria, now 36, is a medical researcher and lives in Moscow with her Dutch husband, Jorrit Faassen.
Sources: Reuters, Newsweek, Bloomberg
Maria and Faassen reportedly have a child — Putin told filmmaker Oliver Stone in 2017 that he was a grandfather. When Stone asked if he played with his grandchild, Putin replied, “Very seldom, unfortunately.”
Sources: Reuters, The Independent, Bloomberg, Daily Mail
Meanwhile, Katerina reportedly lives a high-flying life, living in lavish apartments and acquiring a fortune.
Sources: Reuters, The Independent, Bloomberg, Daily Mail
Katerina, now 35, is an accomplished acrobatic dancer and has a senior position at her alma mater, Moscow State University, heading a $1.7 billion startup incubator.
Sources: Reuters, Bloomberg
Katerina married Russian billionaire Kirill Shamalov in 2013. But the couple divorced in 2018, and the divorce case revealed they were worth $2 billion.
Sources: Bloomberg, Reuters, The Guardian
There are no official current photos of the girls. For Katerina, we found the slightly varying first names “Katerina”, “Katya”, and “Yekaterina,” and the last names “Putina,” “Tikhonova,” and “Shamalov.”
Sources: Reuters, Newsweek
Finally, there are rumors that Putin has a third daughter with girlfriend and former Russian rhythmic gymnast Alina Kabaeva.
Source: New York Post
But neither the child nor the relationship with Kabaeva have been confirmed.
Source: Business Insider
Putin has tried to shelter his children from the media, attempting to keep them out of politics so they can live normal lives.
Sources: Reuters, Business Insider
Despite this, Katerina made her debut on Russian state TV as a biotechnology expert in December 2018.
Source: Business Insider
Her appearance did not include comment on her being related to Putin. The link was briefly made public in the course of a dance competition, but later retracted.
Source: Reuters
In June 2021, Katerina addressed a conference that is Russia’s equivalent of Davos — but nobody called her Putin’s daughter, apparently out of fear of reprisal from the Kremlin.
Source: The Washington Post
In late 2020, Putin announced Russia had completed its COVID-19 vaccine, although it had yet to complete clinical assessments. Putin said he gave the shot to one of his two daughters, but wouldn’t specify which one.
Sources: Business Insider, BBC, Politico
Putin said his daughter’s temperature decreased after getting two shots. “She has taken part in the experiment,” he said, adding, “She’s feeling well and has a high number of antibodies.”
Sources: Business Insider, BBC, Politico
It was a rare acknowledgment for Putin, but one still shrouded in mystery.
In February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, prompting condemnation from around the world. Three weeks later an activist filmed himself inside what he said was a Biarritz apartment owned by Katerina’s ex-husband, saying he wanted to host Ukrainian refugees there.
Source: Insider, The Insider.
By April, the US said it would target “family members” of top Russian officials in a wave of sanctions, with the EU also reportedly considering the move. Sources said that meant Putin’s children — likely Maria and Katerina.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, The White House
Read the original article on Business Insider