A meeting between representatives from the United States and Russia is currently taking place in Saudi Arabia. The U.S. delegation includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, and Trump's special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff. From Russia, the delegation comprises Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, former U.S. ambassador and Putin's foreign affairs advisor Yuri Ushakov, and Kirill Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund. This information was reported by Kontrakty.UA.
This was mentioned in a story by correspondent TSN Dmitry Svyatnenko.
A man speaks about Dmitriev's scam in Ukraine
Both sides insist that this is not the beginning of negotiations for a ceasefire in Ukraine, but rather an initial contact to synchronize their positions and prepare for a future meeting between Trump and Putin. The U.S. State Department explained that they want to personally assess Moscow's willingness to cease hostilities.
In the Kremlin, the goal is to restart U.S.-Russian relations, particularly aiming to convey the losses the American economy has suffered due to sanctions and the exit from the Russian market. President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine would not recognize the outcomes of these negotiations, as we were not invited to participate. No representatives from Europe were invited either. Among the Russian negotiators is Kirill Dmitriev, often referred to as "Putin's wallet" and even his "successor" – a person who was part of the Russian delegation in Saudi Arabia and who, according to Western media reports, plays a key role in unofficial contacts with Trump's team. Rumor has it that he may be tasked with managing the Ukrainian direction in the Kremlin.
Oleg Khavruk met Kirill Dmitriev 15 years ago. Oleg is a serviceman who previously worked in the IT sector before joining the army. Upon seeing Dmitriev’s photo in the news, he immediately recalled the construction scam involving the current Russian negotiator.
At that time, Dmitriev led one of the investment funds that guaranteed the construction of what was promised to be the largest cottage community in Europe: according to the project, it was to feature nine hundred homes, schools, hospitals, gyms, and other exclusive infrastructure. The promotional materials made everything look appealing, solid, and reliable: there were advertisements on television starring the then-popular Ukrainian artist Ani Lorak. Kirill Dmitriev, already a public figure at that time, invested in his own PR. He was a well-known financier involved in the creation of "Delta Bank", oil refining, and IT. When Oleg was preparing to invest in the construction, one of the key factors was the trust in the individuals representing the project.
Thus, in the early 2000s, Oleg secured loans and invested a quarter of a million dollars in a house in the "Olympic Park" cottage community. A year later, construction halted. Dmitriev went into hiding from the defrauded investors and then shifted the blame onto others.
Oleg and other deceived investors fought long and hard to assert their rights. Suddenly, when Kirill Dmitriev was once again preparing to go to Moscow, he sought to suppress the scandal. Oleg claims that Dmitriev's entire management team continues to operate, albeit now under the guise of new owners of the land and business project.
Out of the 900 houses projected, just over one hundred were built. There are no signs of schools, hospitals, or any other infrastructure. Today, the new-old owners are selling off the unfinished buildings.
Kirill Dmitriev hails from Kyiv
Who is Kirill Dmitriev, who defrauded Ukrainian investors in the early 2000s and is now a member of the Russian delegation at the negotiations in Riyadh?
From open sources, it is known that he was born in Kyiv to a family of a professor of biophysics and radiobiology. He is still remembered in the house in the capital's Pechersk district where he grew up.
"I remember him from childhood. He was, well, how can I put it: while everyone was playing football, he was studying English and playing tennis. Then he went somewhere to America. He was not of this world," says a Kyiv resident.
When we speak with neighbors about Kirill Dmitriev and his family, they unanimously request not to show their faces on air. Off-camera, they express their fears.
Kirill Dmitriev holds a Ukrainian passport. Both he and his entire family – father Alexander, mother Tamara, and sister Natalia – are still registered at this house. Neighbors say that they left before the onset of the full-scale war. Currently, Dmitriev Sr. visits the residence twice a year.
Dmitriev's father still lives and works in Kyiv
Dmitriev Sr. – the father of the Russian negotiator involved in the schemes of the "Olympic Park" cottage community. In the early stages, the land on which they planned to build was registered in his name. Today, he owns three hectares. We are trying to locate him and have a conversation.
Officially, he works at the Institute of Cell Biology and Genetic Engineering, Biophysics and Radiobiology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. They say there that he still works and is on vacation.
At the institute, they state that Dmitriev's research is classified.
How Kirill Dmitriev ended up in the Russian Federation
Returning to Kirill Dmitriev's persona. In 1988, the 14-year-old son of a professor left for the United States for education. In America, he obtained a higher education at Stanford University. He returned in 1996 and attempted to build a career in Moscow.
According to investigative journalists from the publication "Insider", it was during this period that he was recruited by Russian intelligence services. As proof, they cite the fact that in Moscow in 2000, he registered his first car, a "Range Rover", under the identification of a Russian intelligence employee.
He returned to Ukraine in 2007. For the next three years, he was seen among the country's most well-known businessmen. He also brought Russian artists to Ukraine and attempted to enter the construction business.
In 2011, he returned to Moscow, right after the dealings with "Olympic Park". This time, he joined the Direct Investment Fund, a government organization that decides where and in which projects to invest surplus budget funds. Most of the money goes into industrial giants owned by oligarchs close to the Kremlin.
During this period, Dmitriev's career soared, and he is linked to a successful marriage. His partner is Natalia Popova. Journalists discovered that she is the best friend of Putin's eldest daughter, Yekaterina Tikhonova. They studied together and now work at the "Inopraktika" fund. To simplify, this organization also helps spend state funds among those close to the Putin family.