Putin’s Daughters Face Sanctions Over Ukraine but Remain Shrouded in Secrecy
Shafaq News / The U.S. and Europe’s decision to potentially sanction two adult daughters of Russian President Vladimir Putin casts a spotlight on a family shrouded for years in secrecy.
Washington plans to sanction Mr. Putin’s two children from his now-ended marriage to a former Aeroflot cabin crew member, according to U.S. officials. The European Union, meanwhile, is set to make the same move following discussions among its 27 members, according to diplomats. The EU sanctions, expected to take effect by Friday, would entail a freeze of any assets held in the bloc and a ban on traveling to member countries.
Western officials identified the two as Maria Putina and Katerina Tikhonova. The two have been kept far from the public view, so much so that the Kremlin has only ever identified them by their first names, Maria and Katerina. Putina would typically connote the elder daughters’ family name, before taking on any married name.
The moves come after a weekend of reports of alleged atrocities that Ukrainian officials say were committed by Russian troops. Moscow has denied any responsibility for atrocities in territories its army recently occupied in Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov Wednesday declined to comment on any plans to sanction Mr. Putin’s daughters. EU officials said on Tuesday they were listing dozens of additional senior officials, oligarchs and politicians in their latest sanctions package. The bloc has broadened the criteria for sanctions to make it easier to go after elites close to the Kremlin.
The EU has already blacklisted the son-in-law of Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and the former wife of Rosneft Chief Executive Officer Igor Sechin. EU officials said last week they would broaden the number of family members of leading officials and oligarchs to increase the pressure on the Kremlin.
The two Putin daughters now being considered for sanctions were born to Mr. Putin’s former wife, Lyudmila Putina. That relationship ended in 2013. Little is known about them. According to the Kremlin’s website, Mr. Putin and his wife had Maria before leaving for Germany in 1985, where Mr. Putin was based as a KGB officer. Katerina was born in 1986 in the German city of Dresden.
(The Wall Street Journal)
