By Guy Faulconbridge
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Who is Kirill Dmitriev, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s investment envoy, who is reportedly heading to Washington for talks with U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration?
WHAT IS HIS JOB?
Dmitriev, 49, the chief of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Russian Direct Investment Fund since 2011, was appointed in February as Putin’s special envoy on international economic and investment cooperation.
WHY IS HE IMPORTANT?
Dmitriev has regular meetings with Putin and is one of the most U.S.-savvy members of Russia’s elite with close relations to some key members of the Trump team.
He played a role in early contacts with the U.S. when Trump was first elected president in 2016, as well as in building relations with Saudi Arabia, which led to an oil price agreement under the expanded OPEC+ producers’ forum.
Dmitriev has met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman dozens of times, and met U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff when he visited Moscow.
Dmitriev’s wife Natalya is a deputy to Katerina Tikhonova, one of Putin’s daughters, at a foundation which works with Moscow State University where they both studied. Both of Putin’s daughters were sanctioned by the United States in 2022.
WHAT IS HIS BACKGROUND?
Dmitriev was born in Kyiv, in Soviet Ukraine, where he studied at a top school known for its expertise in physics and mathematics. He studied at Stanford University in California and was later awarded an MBA with distinction at Harvard.
He speaks fluent English. After Stanford, he worked at Goldman Sachs in New York and also worked for McKinsey & Company. In Moscow, he worked as CEO for Delta Private Equity Partners, an investment management company established by the U.S. Russia Investment Fund.
The Russian Direct Investment Fund, led by Dmitriev since 2011, organised the production of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19 – and helped to promote it in foreign markets.
WHAT COULD HE DISCUSS IN WASHINGTON?
It is not known for sure what he will discuss but Dmitriev could bring a message from Putin to Trump.
He has also spoken about a host of areas where Russia and the United States could cooperate economically, financially and in space. Those include:
– The return of U.S. companies to Russia.
– Rare earths
– Energy prices
– The Arctic, logistics and climate change
– Prisoner swaps
– Space and cooperation with Elon Musk
IS HE SANCTIONED?
U.S. sanctions statements cast Dmitriev as “a known Putin ally”. He was not sanctioned by the European Union.
CNN, which first reported the visit to Washington, said the Trump administration had temporarily lifted the sanctions for his visit.
WHAT ARE HIS BEST QUOTES?
* “When you don’t talk to a nuclear power and when you try to do a strategic defeat of a nuclear power, it definitely creates some risks.”
* “Trump (is) driving tectonic shifts in geopolitics. False malign paradigms (are) collapsing, giving way to common sense and values-driven solutions.”
* “Global companies are lining up to return to Russia, signaling renewed confidence and fresh opportunities in one of the world’s largest markets.”
* “How can you refuse an offer that cannot be refused?”
(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Ros Russell)
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