THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Vladimir Putin, the Russian prime minister, has secret “illicit” assets hidden outside his country, according to allegations contained in reports from Condoleezza Rice, the former US secretary of state, disclosed in the latest batch of Wikileaks cables.
Ms Rice said she had been told by opposition figures in Russia that Mr Putin had attempted to engineer a safe transition when he stepped down as president in 2008 because he wanted to avoid “law enforcement investigations”.
The cable recorded a conversation between David Kramar, then the US deputy assistant secretary of state for Eurasian affairs, and an unidentified opposition leader during a visit to Washington.
Mr Kramar was told that Mr Putin was “nervously seeking to secure his future immunity from potential law enforcement investigations into his alleged illicit proceeds”.
The most likely candidate to take over from him was Sergei Ivanov, a charming, polyglot former KGB officer, who had experience of dealing with the west.
However, the eventual successor, and incumbent, was Dmitry Medvedev, who was described in other leaked cables as the “Robin to Putin’s Batman”.
Cables linked Mr Putin’s wealth to a “secretive Swiss-based oil trading firm” called Gunvor. >>> Andy Bloxham | Thursday, December 02, 2010
Introduction to Gunvor >>>
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THE GUARDIAN: Russian PM allegedly promised Italian leader a cut of energy contracts, leaked US dispatches say
US diplomats have reported startling suspicions that Silvio Berlusconi could be "profiting personally and handsomely" from secret deals with the Russian prime minister, Vladimir Putin, according to cables released by WikiLeaks.
Exasperated by Berlusconi's pro-Russian behaviour, American embassy staff detail allegations circulating in Rome that the Italian leader has been promised a cut of huge energy contracts.
The two men are known to be personally close, but this is the first time allegations of a financial link have surfaced.
Hillary Clinton's state department in Washington sent a special request to the Rome embassy this year, asking for extra intelligence-gathering on the allegations about the men: "What personal investments, if any, do they have that might drive their foreign or economic policies?".
References to Berlusconi's "financially enriching relationship" originated both from members of his own political party and from the hostile government of Georgia, according to the leaked cables. >>> Rob Evans, Luke Harding and John Hooper | Thursday, December 02, 2010
