Miami
Trump Jr. and his wife confirmed a Russian oligarch funded part of their wedding celebrations
Donald Trump Jr. and Bettina Trump said Umar Kremlev paid for a two-night post-wedding celebration in May. ProPublica reported that the Russian businessman covered hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs over three days of festivities.
Donald Trump Jr., son of US President Donald Trump, and Bettina Trump confirmed that part of their May wedding celebrations was financed by Russian businessman Umar Kremlev, who is known for his closeness to Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to Anadolu Ajansı.
In a statement posted on Bettina Trump’s social media account and signed by both, the couple said Kremlev is a close friend and hosted a two-night celebration held after the wedding.
In that message, they argued that Kremlev’s contribution was an exceptionally generous wedding gift and said they were grateful at the time and remain grateful now. They also said friendship does not require a political motive and that generosity does not automatically imply a broader agenda.
On the same day, ProPublica reported that Kremlev covered costs amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars for celebrations that, according to that outlet, lasted three days.
Kremlev is president of the International Boxing Association, IBA, and was recently awarded the Order of Friendship by Putin, Anadolu Ajansı reported.
Anadolu Ajansı also noted that Trump Jr. had previously drawn public attention over Russia-related ties. During the 2016 presidential campaign, his meeting at Trump Tower in New York with Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya became one of the focal points of federal and congressional investigations into whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Russian election interference efforts.
Sources
About this piece. Written by El Notero with AI assistance, from reporting published by the outlet cited above. El Notero did no original reporting on this story.
