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An investigation by the Russian outlet Proekt says leaked Federal Border Service data show Alina Kabaeva flew to Almaty in February 2017, shortly before Vladimir Putin’s official visit to Kazakhstan. State media accounts place Putin in the country before the visit’s announced start, but the report does not establish that Kabaeva traveled with him or explain her movements on every possible trip.
Russian investigative outlet Proekt says leaked Federal Border Service data show Alina Kabaeva flew to Almaty on February 23, 2017, and returned to Russia four days later, around the time Vladimir Putin was in Kazakhstan to meet then-President Nursultan Nazarbayev. The records described by Proekt place both there during the same period, but do not by themselves establish that Kabaeva traveled with Putin; her presence was not publicly reported at the time.
According to Proekt, Kabaeva flew to Almaty aboard a private Embraer Legacy 650 on February 23 and returned to Russia on February 27. The outlet says it examined leaked data from Russia’s Federal Border Service. Meduza, which published an English-language account of the investigation on September 30, 2026, attributes the findings to Proekt.
Putin’s official visit was announced as beginning on February 27, the day Kabaeva reportedly returned. However, Putin had arrived in Kazakhstan several days earlier. State media reports described an informal meeting with Nazarbayev at the Shymbulak ski resort, providing public reporting that corroborates his early arrival. Those accounts do not establish that Kabaeva was with him.
The aircraft, registration D-AHOI, was operated by Air Hamburg, which later became part of VistaJet. Proekt estimates the flight would have cost about $26,000. The outlet also says the same jet was used at various times by the families of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, Investigative Committee head Alexander Bastrykin and Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev. That information identifies other reported users of the aircraft but does not show who paid for Kabaeva’s flight.
A Rare Record of Kabaeva Abroad
Proekt describes the Kazakhstan trip as the only documented instance it found of Kabaeva being abroad during one of Putin’s official visits. It says that, in this case, she was “effectively serving as first lady.” That is the outlet’s characterization of her reported presence; Kabaeva’s role on the trip was not officially announced, and the records described do not show what she did in Kazakhstan or whether she met Putin.
The reporting matters because it adds a specific travel record to public scrutiny of the relationship between Putin and Kabaeva, whom reports have described as his longtime partner and the mother of his sons. The trip also illustrates a limit in the available evidence: matching travel dates and locations can suggest proximity, but they do not prove shared travel, a meeting or the purpose of a journey. The absence of an official account leaves those questions unresolved.
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The Uzbekistan Records Offer Less
Proekt also points to Putin’s June 2016 visit to Uzbekistan for a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit. Putin arrived on June 23. Kabaeva returned to Moscow on June 30 on a scheduled Aeroflot flight, according to the investigation. The leaked data cited by Proekt contain no record of her departure from Russia before that return.
Proekt says that gap could have more than one explanation: the record may be missing because of an error, or Kabaeva may have traveled from Russia to Uzbekistan on a government aircraft. The available information does not resolve which explanation, if either, is correct. The Uzbekistan episode is therefore a possible lead raised by the outlet, not documented proof that Kabaeva accompanied Putin on that trip.
For the 2017 journey, the report’s account rests on leaked border data and contemporaneous state media descriptions of Putin’s early arrival and meeting with Nazarbayev. The sources provide different pieces of the timeline. Neither the travel records as described nor the public accounts confirm a joint itinerary.
“effectively serving as first lady”
— Proekt, as quoted in Meduza’s report
What the Travel Data Cannot Show
The report does not establish whether Kabaeva and Putin traveled together, met in Kazakhstan or shared any part of an itinerary. Her presence was not officially reported, and the information supplied by Proekt does not identify the purpose of her trip, who arranged it or who covered the estimated flight cost. The $26,000 figure is Proekt’s estimate, not a confirmed payment record.
The broader claim that Kabaeva may have joined Putin on other trips is also unconfirmed. The Uzbekistan records cited by Proekt lack a departure entry, and the outlet describes possible explanations rather than a verified route. The report does not provide enough information to determine whether the leak is complete or whether other records could clarify the trips.
Further Records Could Clarify the Trips
Proekt’s published account presents its analysis of leaked border data and related reporting; no official confirmation of Kabaeva’s presence or role in the 2017 visit is included in the source material. No response from Putin, Kabaeva or officials is reported in Meduza’s account. It is not clear whether Proekt plans to publish further documents or whether additional records are available.
Any later reporting could clarify the aircraft’s passengers, arrangements for the flight and the unexplained Uzbekistan travel record. Until then, the supported finding is limited: Proekt says the leaked data place Kabaeva in Almaty from February 23 to 27, 2017, while public state media accounts place Putin in Kazakhstan before his official visit began. Whether their travel was coordinated remains unknown.
Key Questions
What did Proekt report about Alina Kabaeva?
Proekt said leaked Federal Border Service data show Kabaeva flew to Almaty on February 23, 2017, and returned to Russia on February 27.
Did the report confirm that Kabaeva traveled with Putin?
No. The reported records place them in Kazakhstan during the same period, but do not establish that they traveled together or met.
What was Putin doing in Kazakhstan?
Putin met then-President Nursultan Nazarbayev. State media described an informal meeting at the Shymbulak ski resort before the announced start of Putin’s official visit.
What did Proekt find about a possible Uzbekistan trip?
Proekt noted that Kabaeva returned to Moscow from Uzbekistan on June 30, 2016, but the leaked data it examined showed no departure from Russia. The outlet offered possible explanations, and the available information does not confirm that she accompanied Putin.
Source: rss
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