Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said news of Ivanov’s detention had been conveyed to President Vladimir Putin. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu was also informed in advance regarding Ivanov’s detention.
Ivanov, 48, one of 12 deputy defense ministers, was sanctioned by the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) in 2022, following Russia invaded Ukraine. He worked for a company dealing with fuel and energy and for the Moscow City government before joining the defense ministry in 2010.
Six years later, Ivanov was appointed deputy defense minister. Magazine Forbes listed him as one of the richest people in the Russian military structure.
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On the day of the announcement, Russian news outlet RBK posted a photo of himself attending a meeting attended by defense ministry officials, including Shoigu. Ivanov is the most senior Russian official to face criminal charges since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
He was the subject of an investigation published in 2022 by the anti-corruption agency founded by the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The organization reported that Ivanov oversaw and profited from construction projects in Mariupol, Ukraine, which came under Moscow’s control following a months-long siege.
According to an investigation by the organization, which has been banned as an extremist group by the Russian government, Ivanov divorced his wife to avoid EU sanctions. “Today is a good day,” said Head of Investigation at the foundation, Maria Pevchikh, responding to news of Ivanov’s detention. (TheGuardian/M-3)
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