Sponsor of right-wing networks in EU: son of Putin’s KGB friend arrested in Norway

Sponsor of right-wing networks in the EU
Son of Putin’s KGB friend arrested in Norway

10/19/2022, 8:58 PM

Kremlin chief Vladimir Yakunin is considered a close confidant of Putin. For years, an oligarchy with a KGB background has been making crooked deals in Europe and supporting right-wing movements. His son is now in custody of the Norwegian police. Andriy Zalun’s arrest had nothing to do with his father’s actions.

In Norway, the son of former Russian Railways chief and Putin confidant Vladimir Yakun has been arrested for flying illegal drones over the Spitsbergen archipelago. A court in Finnmark province ordered Andriy Yakunin, 47, to be detained for two weeks. According to the police, Yakunin has Russian and British citizenship. Officials said two drones and other electronic devices were seized and investigations are underway.

According to a report by news website The Parents Observer, Yakunin insisted in court that he should consider himself a British citizen and live in Italy. “He admitted to operating the drone, but he had no reason to believe it was illegal,” Yakun’s lawyer said after the court hearing. The lawyer announced that he would appeal against the verdict.

Andrej Yakunin is an entrepreneur and has lived in London and elsewhere for over ten years. According to research, he owns Opposition politician Alexei Navalny’s anti-corruption foundation And this “Times” At least two villas. He became a British citizen in 2015. As Navalny’s team explained after their research in 2015, “his ‘successful contracts’ are inseparable from Russian Railways”.

Yakunin’s father builds anti-democratic networks in Europe

Andrei Yakunin’s father, Vladimir Yakunin, was the head of state railway company RZD from 2005 to 2015. The influential oligarch is considered Putin’s closest confidant. Independent journalists from Germany, Austria, Great Britain and Russia published in mid-August Results of many years of research About Vladimir Yakunin’s networks in Europe. Accordingly, the oligarch’s family – including his son Andrei – has been involved in questionable real estate transactions across Europe. In addition, Yakunin reportedly founded and funded several right-wing, anti-democratic and pro-Kremlin initiatives.

According to research, Vladimir Yakunin is one of Putin’s oldest comrades and is known for his national-conservative worldview. During Soviet times, Yakunin worked in the KGB secret service for more than 20 years. There he reportedly met Putin, the current head of the Kremlin. After annexing Crimea in 2014, the US imposed sanctions on him. Vladimir Yakunin was also added to the British sanctions list after Russian troops invaded Ukraine in February. In response, his son Andre, in an interview with Italian TV channel La7, condemned the invasion and said he “didn’t vote for Putin and his party”.

Within a few days in Norway At least seven Russian citizens were arrested. They have been accused of illegally operating drones in Norway, which borders Russia, or taking illegal photographs in Norway, now Europe’s biggest gas supplier.