Russian President Vladimir Putin has always kept his personal life private. While he may not wish to disclose details about his family, his daughters have made headlines both within and beyond Moscow by speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). Vladimir Putin and his ex-wife Lyudmila have two daughters: Maria Vorontsova, 38, and Katerina Tikhonova, 37. Putin married Lyudmila in 1983.
The high-profile appearance of Putin’s daughters might suggest that the Russian president is contemplating his legacy
Earlier this week, Putin’s elder daughter, Maria Vorontsova, participated in a panel on innovation and biotechnology. Born in 1985, Maria studied biology at St. Petersburg University and medicine at Moscow State University. She is a specialist in the endocrine system and is listed as a researcher at Moscow’s Endocrinology Research Centre. Maria was married to Dutch businessman Jorrit Joost Faassen, a former employee of the Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom. They have reportedly separated.
Maria’s younger sister, Katerina, took part in a panel at the St. Petersburg summit, discussing the present and future of the Russian defense industry. Katerina has gained attention for her talent as a rock n’ roll dancer.
In the summer of 2013, she married Kirill Shamalov, the son of a long-time friend of President Putin. Their wedding took place at an exclusive ski resort near St. Petersburg.
The sisters were targeted by US sanctions in 2022 following the Bucha killings in Ukraine amid the Russia-Ukraine war. The high-profile appearance of Putin’s daughters might suggest that the Russian president, 71, now in his fifth term, is contemplating his legacy and is willing to leverage family connections to enhance it. In the past, the sisters have made a few rare appearances on Russian state television. However, the elder daughter Maria, while not overtly political, has been somewhat more vocal in supporting Putin’s leadership ahead of the country’s presidential elections in March.