Dmitry Peskov
Dmitry Sergeyevich Peskov (Russian: Дмитрий Сергеевич Песков, IPA: [pʲɪˈskof]; born 17 October 1967) is a Russian diplomat and the press secretary for Russian President Vladimir Putin.[1]
Dmitry Peskov | |
|---|---|
| Дмитрий Песков | |
Official portrait, 2018 | |
| Kremlin Press Secretary | |
| Assumed office 22 May 2012 | |
| President | Vladimir Putin |
| Preceded by | Natalya Timakova |
| Kremlin Deputy Chief of Staff | |
| Assumed office 22 May 2012 | |
| President | Vladimir Putin |
| Press Secretary of the Prime Minister of Russia | |
| In office 25 April 2008 – 21 May 2012 | |
| Prime Minister | Viktor Zubkov (until 7 May) Vladimir Putin (from 8 May) |
| Preceded by | Alexey Gromov |
| Succeeded by | Natalya Timakova |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Dmitry Sergeyevich Peskov 17 October 1967 Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Spouses | Anastasia Budennaya (m. 1988; div. 1994)Yekaterina Solotsinskaya (m. 1994; div. 2015) |
| Children | 5, including Nikolay Peskov |
| Alma mater | Moscow State University |
Early life and education
Peskov was born in Moscow. His father, Sergey, headed the Soviet diplomatic mission in Pakistan.[citation needed] In 1989, Peskov graduated from the Institute of Asian and African Countries at the Moscow State University, specializing in History and Eastern studies. In the same year, Peskov joined the Soviet Foreign Ministry.
Political career
In 1990, Peskov was appointed to the Soviet embassy in Ankara, Turkey, as an administrative assistant. He subsequently filled the positions of attaché and then third secretary at the embassy. In 1994, he was assigned to work in the Russian Foreign Ministry in Moscow. After two years there, he was posted back to Ankara in 1996 with the diplomatic rank of second, and then first secretary at the Russian embassy.[1]
In 2000, Peskov returned to Russia to work at the press service of the Russian president, serving in a number of positions, including a four-year term as the first deputy press secretary of the Russian president, from 2004 to 2008. Peskov has served as Putin's spokesman since April 2000. Peskov was named as prime minister Viktor Zubkov's press secretary on 25 April 2008,[2] putting him in place to lead Vladimir Putin's press operations when he moved to the job of Prime Minister under Dmitry Medvedev's presidency. In May 2012, when Putin again became president, Peskov succeeded Natalya Timakova as the presidential spokesperson.
During the 2011–2013 Russian protests in which riot police clubbed protestors, Peskov said that "protesters who hurt riot police should have their livers smeared on the asphalt", causing an outcry among opposition activists.[3]
In January 2016, Donald Trump's personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, sent an e-mail to Dmitry Peskov asking for help with a business deal in Moscow. The Washington Post called this the "most direct outreach documented by a top Trump aide to a similarly senior member of Putin's government."[4][5] After initial difficulties in addressing the email Peskov's office replied by email and telephone. Cohen denied this response when testifying to Congress but later said that he had lied, and the Moscow project had continued until at least June 2016.[6]
In November 2021, Peskov denied allegations that Russia was preparing for a possible invasion of Ukraine.[7] In January 2022, Peskov accused the United States of "fomenting tensions" around Ukraine.[8]
On 1 March 2022, during a conference call with reporters, Peskov did not want to comment on Russian military casualties. He insisted "the Russian troops don't conduct any strikes against civilian infrastructure and residential areas".[9]
Peskov denounced Russians who oppose the war as "traitors".[10] On 27 March 2022, in a conversation with Ryan Chilcote on PBS NewsHour, Peskov claimed the Russian military invading Ukraine was not targeting civilians or civilian infrastructure, only military infrastructure, suggesting that Ukrainian cities such as Mariupol were destroyed by the Ukrainians themselves, and that murdered civilians of that city were killed by fellow "Nazi" Ukrainians; Chilcote observed "in all fairness, you know everyone outside of Russia has been watching hundreds and hundreds of hours of footage that has come out of the country showing widespread targeting of civilian infrastructure, apartment buildings, theaters, hospitals." In the same interview, Peskov said on the usage of nuclear weapons: "... any outcome of the operation, of course, is not a reason for usage of a nuclear weapon. We have a security concept that very clearly states that only when there is a threat for existence of the state in our country, we can use and we will actually use nuclear weapons ... Existence of the state, and special military operation in Ukraine, they have nothing to do with each other. ... There was a part of [Putin's] statement warning different states not to interfere ... and I think that everyone understands what he meant. [.. No one is thinking about using, even about the idea of using nuclear weapons."[11]
In early April 2022, he said that war against Ukraine was necessary because Ukraine had been an "anti-Russian center" since 2014. Peskov denied that Russian soldiers were responsible for the Bucha massacre, saying the whole situation in Bucha was a "well-staged insinuation".[12]
On 2 August 2022, Peskov said Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan was leading to an "increase in tension" in the region and accused the United States of choosing "the path of confrontation", adding "We want to emphasise once again that we are absolutely in solidarity with China, its attitude towards the problem is understandable and absolutely justified."[13]
On 13 September 2022, Peskov said there are no plans to announce a full or partial mobilization in Russia.[14] On 21 September 2022, Putin announced a partial military mobilization. Peskov declined to deny reports that some anti-war protesters had been given draft papers. He noted that the delivery of subpoenas to detainees does not contradict the law.[15] Nikolay Peskov, the son of Dmitry Peskov, told pranksters, who pretended to be recruitment officers, that he had no intention of going to war because he is "Mr. Peskov, and would solve the issue "on a different level."[16][17]
On 30 September 2022, Russia claimed to have annexed four regions of Ukraine after contested referendums supposedly indicating that a vast majority of the population there wanted the regions to become Russian territory. On 3 October 2022, Peskov said that the borders of two of the regions, namely Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, had not been determined yet, but Russia would "consult with the people who live in those regions".[18]
On 26 October 2022, Peskov said, without providing evidence, that Ukraine was planning a terrorist sabotage act using a "dirty bomb"—or an explosive that contains radioactive waste material.[19]
In November 2022, he denied that the Russian military was attacking civilian infrastructure in Ukraine. According to Peskov, the Russian army only attacks targets that are directly or indirectly connected to military potential.[20]
In early December 2022, Peskov denied that the Russian government was planning a new wave of mobilization.[21] In late December 2022, he said that any peace plan to end the Russo-Ukrainian War can only proceed from Ukraine's recognition of Russia's sovereignty over the regions it illegally annexed from Ukraine in September 2022.[22] Peskov said that due to the resistance of the Ukrainian army and Western military support to Ukraine, "the suffering of the Ukrainian people will continue longer than it could have".[23]
In January 2023, Peskov said that "there is currently no prospect for diplomatic means of settling the situation around Ukraine."[24] In March 2023, after the Chinese peace proposal was submitted, he said "we paid a lot of attention to our Chinese friends' plan", but new "territorial realities could not be ignored" as these realities became "an internal factor" (for Russia). Peskov then rejected the Chinese peace proposal, saying that "for now, we don't see any of the conditions that are needed to bring this whole story towards peace."[25]
In March 2023, single father Alexei Moskalyov was sentenced to two years in prison under Russia's 2022 war censorship laws for anti-war comments on social media. His daughter was moved to a state-run "rehabilitation centre" for minors. Peskov defended Moskalyov's conviction and called the father's parenting "deplorable".[26]
On 14 March 2023, Peskov said about possible peace talks between Russia and Ukraine: "We have to achieve our goals. Right now this is only possible by military means due to the current position of the Kyiv regime." [27]
He called the ICC arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin "outrageous and unacceptable",[28] and said that Russia does not recognize the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.[29]
Personal life
In 1988, Peskov married Anastasia Budyonnaya, the granddaughter of Soviet military commander Semyon Budyonny.[30] Their son, Nikolay Peskov (born 1990), is a former conscript in Russia's Strategic Rocket Forces.[17] In 2017, Nikolay's opulent lifestyle was criticized by Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny.[31] In April 2023, it was revealed that Nikolay had joined the Wagner Group and is participating in the Russian invasion of Ukraine as an artillery man.[32]
Peskov's second wife was Ekaterina Solotsynskaya.[30] Their daughter, Elizaveta "Liza" Peskova (born 1998), is an assistant to far-right Aymeric Chauprade, a French Member of the European Parliament.[33][34] After the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Elizaveta posted the words "no to war" to her Instagram page, and deleted it shortly afterwards.[35][36] Peskova owns a company in Russia called "Centrum Moscow", whose revenue increased 70 times for the 2022 fiscal year, with Elizaveta earning a record 137 million rubles. This is 70 times the level of revenue for the previous year.[37][38] Peskov and Solotsynskaya also have two sons, Mika and Deni. Deni resides in Paris.[39]
In August 2014, Peskov had a daughter, Nadya, with Olympic Champion ice dancer Tatiana Navka.[40][41] In July 2015, Peskov and Navka became engaged.[42] Navka holds citizenship with both Russia and the United States.[40] They married on 1 August 2015, after Peskov finalized the divorce with his second wife.[39] A Sobesednik article stated that their marriage occurred in June 2015.[40][41]
Aside from his native Russian language, Peskov is fluent in English, Turkish and Arabic.[citation needed]
On 12 May 2020, Peskov was admitted to hospital after testing positive for COVID-19.[43] He recovered and was discharged on 25 May.[44]
Wealth
Peskov's wife has real estate holdings worth more than $10 million.[45] She heads two companies that have contracts with the Russian state.[46]
During his 2015 wedding, Peskov was photographed wearing an exclusive US$670,000 Richard Mille watch, greater than Peskov's declared income for all his years of service as a state employee. When this fact was discovered, this caused a media reaction, and Peskov replied that Navka had paid for the watch.[47] Russian anti-corruption crusader Alexei Navalny said on 17 August that Peskov vacationed recently with his new wife off the coast of the Italian island of Sardinia on a €350,000 per week yacht called the Maltese Falcon. Navalny cited data from yacht-tracking websites and social-media posts as evidence partially corroborating his source's claims, though he presented no direct proof that Peskov had set foot on the vessel.[48]
Established in January 2014, registered in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) and beneficially owned by Navka, Carina Global Assets had assets of more than $1 million including an apartment and liquidated in November 2015.[41]
Sanctions
On 28 February 2022, in relation to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the European Union blacklisted Peskov and had all his assets frozen.[49][50] The United States imposed similar sanctions on 3 March,[51] and Australia followed suit on 8 March.[52] The United Kingdom imposed sanctions on 15 March.[53][54][55] The United States also sanctioned his wife, Tatiana Navka, and two of his children, Nikolay Peskov and Elizaveta Peskova.[56]
Peskov was sanctioned by the UK government in 2023 in relation to Russo-Ukrainian War. [57]
Awards and honors
- Russia
- Order of Honour (6 August 2007)[58]
- Order of Friendship (22 November 2003)[59]
- Gratitude from the President of the Russian Federation, twice (2004, 2007)[60]
- Gratitude from the Government of the Russian Federation (2009)[60]
- Foreign countries
- Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (Italy, 4 October 2017)[61]
- Order of Manas, 3rd class (Kyrgyzstan, 16 June 2017)[62]
- Order of the Polar Star (Mongolia, 2021)[63]
References
- ^ a b Peskov, Dmitry Kremlin.ru
- ^ "Putin begins forming prime ministerial team". Reuters. 25 April 2008.
- ^ Lally, Kathy. "Putin team taunts demonstrators". Washington Post. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ Rosalind S. Helderman; Carol D. Leonnig; Tom Hamburger (28 August 2017). "Top Trump Organization executive asked Putin aide for help on business deal". Washington Post. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
Cohen's email marks the most direct outreach documented by a top Trump aide to a similarly senior member of Putin's government ... he did not recall receiving a response from Peskov ... The email, addressed to Peskov, appeared to have been sent to a general Kremlin press account.
- ^ Matt Taibbi (23 April 2019). "The Press Will Learn Nothing From the Russiagate Fiasco". Rolling Stone.
- ^ Mueller, Robert S. (18 April 2019). The Mueller Report: The Report of the Special Counsel on the Investigation into Russian Interference in the 2016 Presidential Election. Special Counsel's Office, U.S. Department of Justice. pp. 74–75. ISBN 9780359600281. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
Cohen testified to Congress, and initially told the Office, that he did not recall receiving a response to this email inquiry and that he decided to terminate any further work on the Trump Moscow project as of January 2016. Cohen later said that these statements were false. In fact, he had received (and recalled receiving) a response to his inquiry, and he continued to work on and update candidate Trump on the project through as late as June 2016.
- ^ "U.S. 'Escalating' Russia-Ukraine Tensions by Arming Kiev – Kremlin". The Moscow Times. 23 November 2021.
- ^ "Ukraine urges calm, saying situation 'under control' and Russian invasion not imminent". ABC. 25 January 2022.
- ^ a b "Kremlin denies striking civilian targets in Ukraine, despite evidence". The Times of Israel. 1 March 2022.
- ^ "Kremlin: many people in Russia are showing themselves to be traitors". Euronews. 18 March 2022.
- ^ Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Ukraine and the West: 'Don't push us into the corner', retrieved 29 March 2022
- ^ "Ukraine war: Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov denies war crimes but admits 'significant' Russian losses". Sky News. 8 April 2022.
- ^ "China Has Right to Take Measures to Protect 'Sovereignty': Moscow". The Moscow Times. 2 August 2022.
- ^ "Kremlin Spokesman Says No Mobilization Despite Ukrainian Counteroffensive Success". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 13 September 2022.
- ^ "Anti-war protesters in Russia reportedly handed draft papers". Al Jazeera. 22 September 2022.
- ^ "Pranksters called the son of one of Putin's closest allies and told him he is being enlisted in the army — but he refused". Business Insider. 22 September 2022.
- ^ a b "Draft-dodging son of top Putin aide caught exempting himself from fighting in Ukraine war". Fortune. 22 September 2022.
- ^ "Russia Says Annexed Zones' Borders Not Set as Ukraine Gains". Bloomberg. 3 October 2022.
- ^ "Russia tells China, India Ukraine planning 'dirty bomb' attack". The Times of India. 26 October 2022.
- ^ "Russia denies hitting civilian infrastructure in Ukraine". Anadolu Agency. 24 November 2022.
- ^ "Peskov denied that Russia had a plan for a new wave of mobilization". Meduza. 6 December 2022.
- ^ "British Defense Ministry Notes 'Continued Churn of Senior Russian Officials'". VOA News. 30 December 2022.
- ^ "Kremlin warns of a 'long' war after Biden offers more support on Zelensky's visit to US". CNN. 22 December 2022.
- ^ "There are currently no prospects for diplomatic solution to situation around Ukraine, - Peskov". Censor.NET. 25 January 2023.
- ^ "Kremlin, on China Plan, Says No Conditions for Peace 'At the Moment' in Ukraine". The Moscow Times. 27 February 2023.
- ^ "Russian man whose daughter drew anti-war pictures is detained after fleeing". The Guardian. 30 March 2023.
- ^ "Kremlin: for Now, Goals in Ukraine Can Only Be Achieved by Military Force". U.S. News. Reuters. 14 March 2023.
- ^ Pavlova, Uliana (17 March 2023). "Kremlin calls ICC decision "outrageous and unacceptable"". CNN. from the original on 18 March 2023.
- ^ Michaels, Daniel; Coles, Isabel; Bravin, Jess (17 March 2023). "Russia's Vladimir Putin Faces Arrest Warrant by International Court". The Wall Street Journal. from the original on 18 March 2023.
- ^ a b . Rospress (in Russian). 17 November 2016. Archived from the original on 20 November 2016.
- ^ Evans, Martin (15 March 2022). . The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 15 March 2022.
- ^ "Пригожин заявил о службе сына Пескова артиллеристом в ЧВК «Вагнер»". РБК (in Russian). Retrieved 22 April 2023.
- ^ Taylor, Simon (25 February 2019). "Daughter of Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov working for far-Right French MEP in Brussels". The Telegraph.
- ^ "Daughter of Putin's Spokesman Interns for Far-Right French Member of European Parliament: Report". The Daily Beast. 25 February 2019.
- ^ Jankowicz, Mia. "The daughter of Putin's spokesman publicly opposed Russia's invasion of Ukraine, undermining her dad". Businessinsider.com. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ^ Roth, Andrew (25 February 2022). "Prominent Russians join protests against Ukraine war amid 1,800 arrests". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ^ "Peskov's daughter's company increased its revenue 70 times in an hour". 28 March 2023.
- ^ "The company of Peskov's daughter in the year of the war increased revenue by 70 times". Russian Free Press. 28 March 2023. Archived from the original on 29 March 2023.
- ^ a b ""Діти агресора". УП знайшла сина Пєскова в Парижі". Українська правда (in Ukrainian). 3 March 2022. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- ^ a b c Ахмирова, Римма (Akhmirova, Rimma); Катаева, Виктория (Kataeva, Victoria); Мильчановска, Елена (Milchanovskaya, Elena) (21 July 2015). [Dmitry Peskov and Tatiana Navka will get married again? The "interlocutor" found out that Navka and Peskov had already signed, and learned the details of the celebration timed to this event.]. «Собеседник» (sobesednik.ru) (in Russian). Archived from the original on 3 April 2016. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ^ a b c [Officials and their families: Tatyana Navka, wife of Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation; Dmitry, son of the Minister of Economic Development Alexei Ulyukaev; Head of the Moscow Department of Transport Maxim Liksutov]. Новая газета (in Russian). 5 April 2016. Archived from the original on 6 April 2016. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ^ "Olympic Skating Champion to Marry Russian President Putin's Spokesman". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
- ^ "Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman tests positive for coronavirus". Reuters. 12 May 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
- ^ "Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov back at work". Hong Kong Standard. Associated Press. 25 May 2020. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
- ^ "Questions over lifestyle of Putin's aide and his wife's $10m property empire". the Guardian. 6 February 2019. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
- ^ "Kremlin's earnings list gives glimpse of officials' wealth". France 24. 18 April 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
- ^ Oliphant, Ronald (3 August 2015). "Vladimir Putin's spokesman in luxury watch scandal". The Telegraph. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
- ^ "After Wristwatch Scandal, Putin's Spokesman Grilled Over Luxury Yacht". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 17 August 2015. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
- ^ Valentina Pop; Sam Fleming; Max Seddon (28 February 2022). "EU freezes assets of Russia's leading oligarchs and allies of Putin". The Financial Times.
- ^ "EU Sanctions Putin Oligarchs, Spokesman Over Ukraine". The Moscow Times. 28 February 2022.
- ^ Nick Wadhams; Jennifer Jacobs (3 March 2022). "U.S. Sanctions Usmanov, Prigozhin, Tokarev, Other Russian Elites". Bloomberg News.
- ^ Dziedzic, Stephen (8 March 2022). "New sanctions on Russia as Australia seeks to counter Ukraine invasion misinformation". ABC News. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
- ^ Penna, Dominic (15 March 2022). "Politics latest news: New Russia sanctions hit 370 people including oligarchs and their families". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
- ^ Walker, Peter; Elgot, Jessica (15 March 2022). "UK to impose sanctions on 370 more Russians". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
- ^ "Foreign Secretary announces historic round of sanctions: 15 March 2022". GOV.UK. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
- ^ "Treasury Sanctions Kremlin Elites, Leaders, Oligarchs, and Family for Enabling Putin's War Against Ukraine". United States Department of the Treasury. 11 March 2022. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- ^ "CONSOLIDATED LIST OF FINANCIAL SANCTIONS TARGETS IN THE UK" (PDF). Retrieved 16 April 2023.
- ^ . szrf.ru. Archived from the original on 1 January 2014. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
- ^ "Указ Президента РФ от 22 ноября 2003 г. N 1382". Retrieved 4 November 2022.
- ^ a b "Биография Дмитрия Пескова". TASS. 16 October 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
- ^ "Peskov Dott. Dmitry Sergeevich". quirinale.it. 4 October 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
- ^ "О награждении государственными наградами Кыргызской Республики". Ministry of Justice of Kyrgyzstan. 17 June 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
- ^ "Монголия вручила орден пресс-секретарю Путина". Baikal Daily. 9 October 2021. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
External links
- Peskov's profile and assets on Russian Asset Tracker