Date

Author

Sergei Ezhov

Source

The Insider

Preserved copy

Internet Archive

Original Material

Stamp them through: Russian oligarchs, FSB generals, religious figures, and children of the elite travel abroad under diplomatic cover

Holding a diplomatic passport offers notable perks — even for those who aren't career diplomats. An investigation by The Insider has revealed that in Russia, these passports are handed out to members of Vladimir Putin's inner circle, including FSB generals, the children of top officials, Patriarch Kirill, CEOs of state-owned corporations, and politically connected billionaires like Oleg Deripaska, Alisher Usmanov, and Igor Yusufov. Some oligarchs close to Putin are even designated as “honorary consuls” of foreign countries — including EU member states — in Russia.

Contents

Privileged offspring

On the night of May 26, 2023, Russia launched 17 missiles and 31 drones at Ukraine, resulting in damage to residential buildings and a medical clinic, causing multiple casualties — including among children. That same night, a Dassault Falcon 7X private jet flying from Dubai landed at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport. Exiting the plane was Ksenia Shoigu, the daughter of then-Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.

Ksenia Shoigu was accompanied by Andrei Bokarev — an oligarch with ties to Russia’s defense industry. Bokarev and his jet have also given the wife of Rostec head Sergey Chemezov a lift to vacation resorts. (Rostec is Russia’s sprawling state-owned defense corporation, and its CEO is a former KGB agent and a close ally of Vladimir Putin.)

According to data obtained by The Insider, Ksenia Shoigu traveled to Dubai with a foreign passport numbered 1001***24. Series 10 — the first two digits of the document — denote a Russian diplomatic passport.

Russian law clearly outlines who is entitled to hold diplomatic passports. The list includes categories such as employees of the Foreign Ministry, government ministers, and members of parliament (MPs). The adult children of Russian officials would not appear to qualify. However, these passports can also be issued to “other individuals by decision of the President of the Russian Federation.”

Diplomatic passports can be issued to anyone “by decision of the President of the Russian Federation.”

Ksenia Shoigu received her first diplomatic passport in 2017, with a subsequent one issued in 2021. Using these, she traveled to China, the Netherlands, Italy, Switzerland, Turkey, Austria, France, Germany, the UK, Finland, Qatar, Israel, Azerbaijan, and Spain.

And she is far from alone. Ilya Medvedev, son of ex-President and current vice-chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, obtained diplomatic passports in 2012 and 2017. He used the documents to visit Italy, Croatia, Switzerland, Israel, and France.

Alexander Mishustin, son of Russia’s Prime Minister (PM) Mikhail Mishustin, received his diplomatic passport on Jan. 27, 2020 — just days after his father assumed office. He was only 19 at the time.

Oligarchs and state company executives

According to sources cited by The Washington Post, aluminum magnate Oleg Deripaska has made multiple visits to the U.S. using a Russian diplomatic passport. The Insider was able to verify that he holds such a document, confirming that he used it to travel to India in 2023.

Billionaire metals tycoon Alisher Usmanov has used diplomatic passports — issued in 2012 and 2017 — for travel to destinations such as Munich and Sardinia, where he owns villas.

German police prepare to search Usmanov's villa in Bavaria.

Photo: Der Spiegel.

Similarly, billionaire Igor Yusufov — known as Dmitry Medvedev’s “wallet” — i.e. a trusted individual who masks ownership of assets and accounts that, in fact, are controlled by Russia’s top officials — also possesses a diplomatic passport. This year, he was among Russia’s leading dividend recipients, earning 12.8 billion rubles ($128.7 million) from “Yargeo,” a joint venture with “Novatek” focused on the Yarudeyskoye oil field.

Since 2013, Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin has used diplomatic passports for travel to countries including Singapore, France, Germany, Italy, Egypt, Iran, Indonesia, China, India, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Japan, Spain, Portugal, Croatia, Finland, Norway, Qatar, the UAE, and the Maldives.

The Insider also uncovered that Russian Railways CEO Oleg Belozerov, along with the aforementioned Rostec head Sergey Chemezov, are holders of diplomatic passports.

Even the head of the Russian Orthodox Church — which has effectively become a proxy for the Russian state — enjoys diplomatic privileges.

Before direct flights to Western countries from Russia were suspended, Patriarch Kirill (Vladimir Gundyaev) frequently traveled to Germany, Austria, and Finland using a diplomatic passport.

FSB generals and Putin’s friends

Diplomatic passports have also been issued to Federal Security Service (FSB) generals Alexander Bortnikov, Sergey Beseda, Sergey Korolev, and Alexey Sedov, who used them for trips to France and Switzerland before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Viktor Zubkov, Putin’s longtime ally from his time at the St. Petersburg mayor’s office, who served as caretaker Prime Minister during the presidential transition from Putin to Medvedev, also enjoys travel privileges as a “diplomat.” He currently chairs the board of directors at Gazprom — Russia’s state-owned natural gas exporter.

Zubkov, like Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller, travels on private jets owned by the corporation. Zubkov’s itineraries include a spring trip last year to Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, aboard a Dassault Falcon 7X.

Presidential aide Andrei Fursenko, for his part, used his diplomatic passport for travel to Tehran, Berlin, Vienna, Paris, and Rome.

Fursenko is part of the notorious “Ozero” cooperative, a group that has become emblematic of entrenched corruption in Russia. Originally a collective of dacha owners, its members included some of Vladimir Putin’s associates during his early years in St. Petersburg. Over time, these former neighbors leveraged their government connections and political influence to amass fortunes, cementing their status within the country’s elite.

“Formally, a diplomatic passport is an official document. Officials can use it only for business trips and are obligated to return it to the personnel department when they return. But, naturally, this rule isn’t universally applied. Trips by VIPs with diplomatic passports to places like the French Riviera have always been quietly overlooked,” a former Russian government official, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Insider.

“Trips by VIPs with diplomatic passports to places like the French Riviera have always been quietly overlooked,” a former Russian government official told The Insider.

It should also be noted that the green Russian passport by itself does not offer total freedom of international movement: while entry into the EU was until recently unrestricted, travel to the UK did and does require obtaining a visa. And at least in this case, holders of diplomatic passports often face even more scrutiny than ordinary travelers.

Honorary consuls

Andrei Fursenko’s brother, Sergey Fursenko, a VP at Gazprombank, is a “diplomat in reverse” — he holds the title of Honorary Consul of Bangladesh in St. Petersburg.

Russian billionaires have long been fond of becoming honorary consuls: the position carries little in the way of actual duties but offers considerable prestige. One can hold the title for a foreign country without being a citizen — essentially taking on a role similar to that of a “foreign agent.”

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, Putin’s “wallets” Gennady Timchenko and Yuri Kovalchuk (Thailand) both hold honorary consul status. Timerbulat Karimov, Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin’s son-in-law, retains the role of Honorary Consul of Italy in the Russian city of Ufa.

Karimov (far right) with his wife Inga, Igor Sechin's daughter, at the unveiling of a monument to Russian writer Maxim Gorky in Sorrento, 2018.

Photo: agopress.it

Representing Italy’s interests alongside Karimov is Mikhail Kusnirovich, founder of the luxury retail group Bosco di Ciliegi. Kusnirovich has acted as an authorized representative for Vladimir Putin in multiple presidential elections and has backed pro-government candidates in electoral contests in Moscow.

The businessman has been implicated in several probes by anti-corruption investigators: his companies secured government contracts bypassing competitive procedures, and he was also granted a lease for the GUM Department Store building near Red Square in Moscow without a formal bidding process. Kusnirovich has since acquired Italian citizenship and resides in Switzerland.

Six months ago, there were reports that steel tycoon Vladimir Lisin had stepped down as Honorary Consul of San Marino. However, his name still appears on the latest published list of accredited individuals by the Russian Foreign Ministry (dated 03.10.2024).

Unpunished abuse

It is clear that diplomatic passports are not meant to be handed out among friends or relatives of officials, but current legal norms do not provide a way to prevent such abuses. Formally, the state has the authority to issue diplomatic passports to virtually anyone, explains former diplomat Boris Bondarev:

“A diplomatic passport is an identification document for a diplomatic agent — meaning an individual authorized by the state to represent it in various capacities abroad. This could be a diplomat, a diplomatic courier, or simply a member of a delegation attending an important event. For example, diplomatic passports are issued to ministers or governors when they travel on official visits. This is entirely at the state's discretion, and the Foreign Ministry can issue such passports to practically anyone upon request. If a request comes from the Presidential Administration or if Vladimir Vladimirovich [Putin] himself asks for one to be issued to a friend, it will be done. It is an abuse from a common-sense perspective, but it is not explicitly regulated by law. Diplomats themselves also abuse this system since, theoretically, the passport should be returned to the Foreign Ministry’s HR department and is only issued for official trips. Many, however, do not return it and use it for personal travel.”

Still, diplomatic passports no longer offer as many privileges as they once did: visa-free entry to the Schengen zone for holders has been suspended (a key reason these passports were valued by Russian elites), leaving visa-free access limited to select countries like Albania, Iceland, China, and several African nations. Furthermore, a diplomatic passport alone does not grant diplomatic privileges.

“Only one category of diplomats — those accredited to a country or an international organization — can enjoy diplomatic privileges and immunity. These individuals have protections like inviolability of residence and correspondence, are exempt from taxes, and cannot be involved in criminal proceedings. If you simply arrive with a diplomatic passport for a short stay and it does not indicate you are an embassy staff member, you do not receive these privileges,” Bondarev explains.

Formally, the state retains the right to issue diplomatic passports to virtually anyone, but scandals involving their misuse arise periodically, notes Andrey Rozum, partner at Vilnius-based law firm Legal Status:

“Allegations of misuse occasionally surface, though they more often originate from the individual's home country. About five years ago, a major scandal emerged involving African and island nations selling diplomatic passports to Iranian businessmen. Host countries theoretically have the authority to verify the proper use of diplomatic passports, such as by requesting confirmation from the issuing country that the holder performs official functions. If violations are identified, the host country can declare the individual ‘persona non grata’ and demand their departure without explanation. In cases of widespread or serious abuses, such as the aforementioned scandal, visa-free privileges for all diplomats from the implicated country could potentially be revoked.”