Raising Putin's Sons

Journalists from the investigative project Sistema obtained documents and correspondence related to the hiring of foreign specialists to educate the alleged sons of Vladimir Putin and former Olympic champion Alina Kabaeva. The documents provide a rare glimpse into the lives and education of Putin’s children.

The records indicate that over the past eight years, the family employed at least 20 foreign tutors and governesses, including citizens of NATO countries that Putin has publicly described as adversaries in Russia’s War on Ukraine. Maintaining this staff reportedly costs  hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.

Sistema obtained leaked documents covering the years 2017 through 2026, consisting largely of emails sent to an account used by Olesya Fedina and Ekaterina Golovacheva, cousins of Alina Kabaeva, the alleged mother of Putin's sons. According to the records, the two women managed the recruitment of foreign tutors and teachers for the children. Fedina acted as the family’s representative on educational matters, while Golovacheva oversaw financial and administrative issues.

Their correspondents included employees of family-linked offshore companies, Kabaeva’s aides, legal firms, and elite recruitment agencies. One key figure was Irina Tarasova, a former employee of a Russian government agency overseeing state property abroad. Correspondence suggests Tarasova interviewed candidates and forwarded assessments and profiles of prospective tutors to Fedina and Golovacheva. Payroll and accounting matters were reportedly handled through companies associated with LLC Invest, which investigative journalists have previously linked to Putin.

Putin has never publicly acknowledged a relationship with Kabaeva, nor has he confirmed that the children are his. The Russian president rarely speaks about his private life and especially his family. Even when referring to his two adult daughters from his marriage to Lyudmila Putina, he has often declined to name them. Previous investigations, corroborated by Sistema, identified that the elder son, Ivan, was born in 2015 and the younger, Vladimir, in 2019.

According to Sistema, the search for foreign educators began in 2017, before Ivan turned two. By 2018, his schedule already included English, German, and music lessons. Later, tutors were also hired for his younger brother. Documents from 2021 and 2022 refer to Vladimir simply as "the little one," at a time when he was not yet three years old.

Sistema identified about 20 educators who worked with the family between 2017 and 2025. They came from the United Kingdom, South Africa, New Zealand, Germany, Austria, and Ireland. Typically, four to six tutors worked with a child at any given time. Their primary task was to create a full language-immersion environment through play and everyday interaction.

Internal records show that the president’s children were expected to master at least two foreign languages. Notes from a 2019 meeting indicate that by age four, Ivan was supposed to be continuously immersed in a "language bath," with English proficiency comparable to that of a "well-educated European." Similar goals were set for German.

The documents also reveal strict ideological boundaries. Contracts prohibited tutors from discussing sexuality, sexual education, or LGBT-related topics without prior approval. During negotiations with one German teacher, employers proposed specifying that Ivan, as a boy, should be assigned only male names and male roles during role-playing activities.

Despite the political sensitivities, reports from tutors describe a childhood that was otherwise ordinary. Ivan enjoyed drawing, blowing soap bubbles, playing circus games, and building garages out of cardboard boxes.

Working conditions were tightly controlled. Tutors underwent annual medical examinations and additional screenings after any travel. They were required to report health issues that could affect family members. Managers even monitored everyday habits, including whether staff walked barefoot indoors. Tutors also complained about the requirement to submit lengthy daily reports documenting activities with the children, often including photographs and detailed descriptions.

Accommodation was modest rather than luxurious. Staff were provided with apartments or hotel rooms, though employers reserved the right to assign additional occupants. Private bedrooms and bathrooms were guaranteed. Utilities, phone service, and internet access were covered, while personal international calls and streaming subscriptions were not.

The correspondence frequently mentions "the village" and "the forest," likely references to the area surrounding Putin’s residence in Valdai. Staff travel to and from the residence was arranged by employers, as were flights to Sochi when the family relocated there. Independent trips into town were effectively impossible, contributing to a sense of isolation. In 2023, one British English teacher requested two months of unpaid leave, citing personal matters and burnout from what he described as "life in quarantine."

Financial records reviewed by Sistema suggest that the family spent hundreds of thousands of dollars each year on foreign educational staff. Tutors generally signed two contracts: a private agreement with a family representative detailing their duties, plus a formal employment contract with a Russian entity linked to the SOGAZ medical group. Under the official arrangement, tutors were classified as "senior translators," enabling them to obtain Russian work permits and visas as highly qualified specialists.

Internal correspondence from 2020 budgeted a staff of five to six tutors earning the equivalent of roughly $7,000 each per month, implying annual personnel costs approaching $400,000.