Donald Trump Jr wedding partly paid for by Russian man with Putin ties
Updated . First published at
The new daughter-in-law of US President Donald Trump has confirmed her wedding celebrations were partially funded by a man with close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Donald Trump Jr and socialite Bettina Anderson held their May wedding bash in the Bahamas, with Russian oligarch Umar Kremlev helping pick up the tab, according to a report by ProPublica, an investigative website.
Donald Trump Jr. and his wife Bettina Anderson were married in the Bahamas in May. AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson
Anderson confirmed his involvement in a social media post on Monday (Tuesday AEST).
In a post on her Instagram page signed by the couple, Anderson wrote that Kremlev was a “dear friend” who “very generously hosted two incredible nights of celebrations for us AFTER our wedding”.
“It was an extraordinarily generous wedding gift from a friend, and something for which we were and remain incredibly grateful.”
Kremlev, a Russian business figure who heads the International Boxing Association, “footed the bill for hundreds of thousands of dollars of wedding expenses”, including paying to rent two private islands where the three-day party was held, according to ProPublica.
In the post, Anderson said that she and the president’s eldest son were married in a private ceremony “surrounded ONLY by our family”.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, with oligarch and world boxing official Umar Kremlev in Moscow during September 2022. (Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
“The weekend that followed had actually been planned well in advance as a fun weekend with friends.
“It was never intended to be our wedding weekend. When our original wedding plans changed, we simply decided to get married before it and arrived at an already planned weekend as newlyweds.”
She also wrote how the celebrations had been portrayed as “sinister”.
“It’s unfortunate that something so personal and happy can be recast as something political or sinister simply because of who someone is or where they come from. Friendship doesn’t require a political motive. Generosity doesn’t automatically come with an agenda. And sometimes a wedding gift is simply a wedding gift.”
One senior Democratic politician in the US demanded answers about Trump Jr’s links with Kremlev.
Robert Garcia, a member of the House of Representatives oversight committee, wrote on X he was worried about potential Russian influence on Trump Jr.
“Why did a Russian oligarch close to Putin fund Trump Jr’s wedding in the Bahamas?
“Umar Kremlev spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on the president’s son. What did he get in return? We need answers.”
Kremlev made the gift as Russia and Ukraine remain embroiled in their bloody war, a conflict showing no signs of ending soon despite peace talks brokered by the Trump administration.
The US president did not attend the wedding or the subsequent celebrations, telling media he was dealing with the Iran conflict.
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