Alina Kabaeva has been rumoured to be Vladimir Putin’s girlfriend since 2008, shortly after he divorced his wife. Despite being rumoured to be close to the Russian President, Kabaeva still hasn’t been sanctioned. But why?
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There is no proof of their relationship
Despite the rumours that Alina Kabaeva is Putin’s secret lover, there is no concrete proof that the pair are an item. The rumours first appeared in 2008, a Russian newspaper Moskovsky Korrespondent reported that the pair were engaged. That same newspaper later shut down.
The Russian President has also denied his relationship with the ex-Russian gymnast:
I have a private life in which I do not permit interference. It must be respected,
I have always reacted negatively to those who with their snotty noses and erotic fantasies prowl into others’ lives.
The West doesn’t want to escalate things
According to New York Post, another reason why the West is yet to sanction Alina Kabaeva is that they don’t want to create even more tensions between Russia and the US, which could impact the efforts to create peace in Ukraine.
The Biden administration hasn't ruled out sanctioning Kabaeva but is waiting for the opportune moment where it will make the most impact. So far, the West has sanctioned Putin’s direct family, meaning his ex-wife and his two adult children.
A US official told the Wall Street Journal:
We have prepared sanctions on a number of people who haven’t yet been sanctioned, and we continue to think about when to impose those sanctions for maximum impact,
Kabaeva has kept a low profile since the beginning of the war and until recently, was rumoured to be hiding in a Swiss chalet with her and Putin’s young children. Over the weekend she wasseen in Moscow for the ‘Alina Festival’.
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