Who is Umar Kremlev? Russian businessman and Putin aide who partially financed Trump Jr.’s wedding: Everything you need to know | Today’s news
Umar Kremlev, a Russian businessman who is said to have close ties to President Vladimir Putin, is making headlines after Donald Trump Jr.’s new wife, Bettina Anderson, confirmed on her Instagram account that the couple’s May wedding was partly funded by Kremlin.
On Monday, Bettina shared a post on her Instagram account, signed by the couple, and wrote that Umar Kremlev was a “dear friend” who “very generously organized two incredible nights of celebration for us AFTER our wedding.” She added: “It was an extremely generous wedding gift from a friend and something we were and remain incredibly grateful for.”
Bettina shared the post after the nonprofit investigative website ProPublica reported Monday that the Kremlin helped finance Trump Jr. and Bettina Anderson’s wedding in the Bahamas. The report said Kremlev, described as a close associate of Putin, “footed the bill for hundreds of thousands of dollars in wedding expenses,” including the cost of renting one of the two private islands where the three-day celebrations took place.
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Bettina Anderson issues an explanation
The post went on to clarify: “The weekend that followed was actually 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 decided to get married before then and arrived on the already planned weekend as newlyweds.”
Bettina added: “It’s unfortunate that something so personal and happy can be remade into 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 the program. And sometimes a wedding gift is just a wedding gift.”
Anderson’s post comes as US President Donald Trump pushes for mediation efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war. The participation of Kremlin at the wedding of Trump Jr. could also cast a shadow as Americans head to the polls in the Nov. 3 U.S. midterm elections, a contest already marred by rising gasoline prices, the Iran war and other domestic issues.
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Who is Umar Kremlev?
According to TIME, Kremlev, 43, is a Tajik native who was formerly known as Lutfulloyev, his birth name. However, he changed it to Kremlin in 2010, when he was less than 20 years old. Before the name change, Kremlev was convicted of extortion in 2004 and assault in 2007.
Kremlev later teamed up with the Night Wolves, a prominent Russian biker group. During his time with the organization, which was the first officially recognized motorcycle community in the Soviet Union, he met Alexei Rubezhnoi, who now heads Putin’s presidential security service. The Washington Post reported that Putin is considered an honorary member of the Night Wolves.
Kremlev, who has been involved in boxing since childhood, founded Patriot in 2015, which promotes boxing events. Two years later, he was appointed Secretary General of the International Boxing Association (IBA), following a leadership shake-up in which Rubezzhnoy took over as head of its supervisory board. Rubezhnoi subsequently nominated Kremlev for the post of General Secretary, before Kremlev was elected IBA President in 2020.
In 2024, he founded Rolf, the largest Moscow car dealership group, which was previously state-owned.
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Kremlin ties to Putin
The Russian oligarch has been linked to Putin for years, according to the report. During Kremlev’s tenure as IBA president, Gazprom, Russia’s state-owned energy giant and one of the country’s largest companies, began to financially support the boxing federation. In the same year, Kremlev appeared alongside Putin at the inauguration of the International Boxing Center in Moscow.
Under the Putin administration, Russian government officials and oligarchs held supervisory roles in various sports organizations across the country.
According to the IBA, Putin also awarded the Kremlin with the Order of Friendship, a state award that celebrates those who have helped improve the Moscow federation in several sectors. He also reportedly accompanied Putin to China during his trip this year.
It remains to be seen whether the Kremlin’s ties to Putin and Trump’s son will cause the US president any trouble.
