Maroc - EURASIAREVIEW.COM - A la une - 06/Sep 23:58

Russian Investigation Confirms Putin’s Son Was Born In Switzerland

By Elena Servettaz The Dossier Center, a website specialised in tracking the criminal activities of people connected to the Kremlin, has confirmed that one of the sons of Russian President Vladimir Putin was born in Switzerland in 2015. The report, published on Wednesday quoting an anonymous source working at Putin’s residence, said his long-term partner, Alina Kabaeva, delivered their first son at a clinic in Lugano, southern Switzerland. The Dossier Center report also provided rare insights into the living conditions of the couple’s two sons, now aged nine and five, at their residence on Lake Valdai, in central Russia. Putin divorced his wife Lyudmila in2013 but has never publicly acknowledged his relationship with Kabaeva, a former gymnast. Their relationship has drawn a lot of media attention, including speculation on where their sons were born. In a report published in May 2022, Swiss newspaper SonntagsZeitung confirmed that the couple had two sons, with the first one born in Switzerland. This information was never officially confirmed. Inan interview with SWI swissinfo.ch,Sergei Pugachev, aformer advisor toPutin, indirectly confirmed the information. “Everyone in Russia knows that Alina Kabaeva is, so to speak, his wife since Putin’s divorce. And it would be normal she gave birth in Switzerland. His eldest children study abroad.” Switzerland has long been a preferred destination for wealthy Russian citizens to give birth. Russian women say they are attracted by the quality of care provided by the country’s private clinics. In a previousreport on Russian women giving birth abroad, SWI had noted that the website ofthe Lugano clinic Sant’Anna advertised that it delivered “children oftop Russian leaders”. At the time, we were unable to confirm that Putin’s son was born there. The source quoted in the Dossier Center’s report is a member of Putin’s household staff. The source’s identity was verified using public sources and bank statements. Kabaeva’s multiple trips to Switzerland The source said that Kabaeva travelled toLugano three times in 2014. Onher last trip, she was accompanied byNatalia Thiebaud, aRussian-born gynecologist from Sant’Anna clinic. “There was aRussian-speaking gynecologist atthe clinic inLugano. Wecan assume that this was anadditional factor for Russian businessmen when choosing acountry for childbirth,” says Ilya Rozhdestvensky, ajournalist at the Dossier Center, inaninterview with SWI. In the spring of2015, Kabaeva gave birth toher first son, Ivan, at that same clinic, the source said. In2018, Kabaeva reportedly travelled toSwitzerland again for aprenatal check-up, according tothe Dossier Center. Inthe spring of2019, the Swiss gynecologist travelled toMoscow todeliver Kabaeva’s second child. Thiebaud, who emigrated toSwitzerland from Russia 30years ago, received Swiss citizenship. She worked under her married name. “She maintained aclose relationship with Putin.” the source told the Dossier Center. The decision onwhere the births would take place was made bythe president himself, the source added. “Our source from among the personnel ofVladimir Putin’s family informedus that Kabaeva’s birth occurred inLugano. Additionally, wehave accessed flight data for Alina Kabaeva and verified that she flew toSwitzerland, including with gynecologist Natalia Thiebaud. The gynecologist herself also travelled toRussia around the time Kabaeva was due togive birth toher second child,” Rozhdestvensky tells SWI. Putin’s children are living an isolated life The Dossier Center has named the sons for the first time: they are Ivan and Vladimir. The report said they live inisolation under the protection ofthe Russian Federal Protective Service. The boys rarely see their parents and meet other children only during holidays, mostly those ofKabaeva’s friends. They travel byprivate jet, on yachts and on armoured trains. They are educated by governesses, sports teachers and nannies, the report said. Almost every residence includes asports complex with agymnastics hall and aswimming pool, and sometimes even ahockey rink. Personal trainers handle their swimming and gymnastics training. Following Russia’s invasion ofUkraine, preference was given toteachers from “friendly” South Africa. However, Ivan and Vladimir also have teachers with British and New Zealand passports. According toinvestigators, the ten foreign teachers of Putin’s children are paid between 330,000 and 1.2 million rubles (CHF3,138-CHF11,574) per month. The teachers are hired through the English Nanny agency, which selects staff for wealthy Russian families, including native language speakers. Under the employer’s conditions, the educators are prohibited from leaving the residence. The job posting states that the family “lives inisolation” inthe St. Petersburg region. Additionally, the Dossier Center’s investigation reveals that the teachers’ salaries are processed through clinics inthe MMC network (MyMedical Center, formerly SOGAZ), where friends and close associates ofthe president also receive medical examinations. Contracts with the governesses are formalised asifthey were translators. The Dossier Center reports that getting ajob with Putin’s family isalmost aseasy as“walking inoff the street”: job vacancies are publicly advertised and anyone can apply. For instance, inearly 2024 the family sought anEnglish teacher tolive with and educate their two sons, aged four and eight. The job was five days aweek, totalling 60hours, with duties including “teaching other subjects” and accompanying the children ontrips. The salary was €7,700 per month. The agency notes that ithas long worked with this family and has previously found several English- and German-language teachers for them. OneGerman-language teacher is Sofia Bozic. Over the past four years, Bozic earned 25.3 million rubles (anaverage of516,000 rubles per month). Born in1992, she isacitizen ofBosnia and Herzegovina, and lived inAustria. She islikely tobehighly trusted byPutin’s family asshe has worked for them longer than her colleagues and received aloan ofnearly 233.8 million rubles from MMC inJuly 2023. “The children are being taught German because itwas their father’s will. Vladimir Putin himself knows German and preferred his children tospeak the language aswell,” explains Rozhdestvensky of the Dossier Center. The family constantly requires new teachers, with turnover linked tothe difficulty ofgetting along with the family, according toasource among the service staff. Additionally, the market for foreigners willing towork inRussia, especially after the war in Ukraine began, islimited, and many have heard about the strict isolation conditions, asstated inthe investigation.