Putin-linked businessman reportedly funded Trump Jr.'s wedding reception, stirring controversy

Donald Trump Jr. and Bettina Anderson [Getty Images]

A businessman with close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly helped fund the wedding reception of Donald Trump Jr., the eldest son of US President Donald Trump, stirring controversy.

According to a report by ProPublica, a US nonprofit investigative news outlet, published Monday (local time), Russian oligarch Umar Kremlev covered hundreds of thousands of dollars — part of the cost of a three-day reception held after Trump Jr.'s wedding to Bettina Anderson in May.

The wedding and reception were held on a privately owned luxury island in the Bahamas.

Kremlev paid for the island rental and fireworks, among other expenses, ProPublica reported.

According to the outlet, the island rents for about $100,000 per night, while the fireworks alone cost $70,000.

Kremlev is a Russian businessman and president of the International Boxing Association (IBA) known to have close ties to Putin. He leveraged those ties to secure a Russian state lottery contract and gain control of Russia's largest car dealership chain, according to the report.

The island rental and related costs for the reception were paid through an IBA-affiliated entity based in Dubai, UAE, which the IBA uses for financial transactions.

Kremlev received a state decoration from Putin shortly before attending the wedding. He has also accompanied Putin on official visits to China.

ProPublica described Kremlev's funding of the reception as "one of Putin's close associates providing financial support to the president's son and cultivating an intimate relationship with the Trump family," adding that "the Putin government, long considered a major adversary of the United States, has faced criticism for attempting to influence American elections over the past decade."

National security experts "raise the urgent question of what motivated Kremlev to pour enormous sums of money into building this relationship," ProPublica reported.

Trump had said he would skip his son's wedding

Meanwhile, Trump had earlier indicated he would not attend his son's wedding.

Before the wedding in May, Trump wrote on his Truth Social account that while he "would love to be with my son Don Jr. and Bettina, who will be a great new member of the Trump family," he could not do so "because of government-related matters and my love for the United States." He added that he believed "it is important that I remain at the White House in Washington, D.C. during this important time."

Trump was facing a packed agenda at the time, including negotiations over ending the war with Iran.

Anderson, who is from Palm Beach, Florida, is a socialite who studied art history at Columbia University.

Trump Jr. previously married model and actor Vanessa Haydon in 2005 and had five children with her before the couple divorced in 2018. He later became engaged to former Fox News personality Kimberly Guilfoyle, but the two split last year. He subsequently began a relationship with Anderson.

yul@heraldcorp.com