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As Austrian foreign minister, Kneissl hosted Vladimir Putin at his wedding in 2018 and even danced with the Russian president. Since graduating from government a year later, he has been instrumental in creating documentaries for the Kremlin-funded RT news channel.
Kneissl did not respond to a request from Bloomberg reporters for comment on the situation.
If Rosneft shareholders approve Ms Kneissl’s candidacy, she will join former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who has been Chairman and Independent Director since 2017.
Schroeder’s close ties to the Kremlin in Germany have been widely criticized.
Although Russia cut its stake in Rosneft to just over 40 percent last year. shares, he is still the largest shareholder, which means that his candidacy will undoubtedly be accepted.
Delphi He recalls that Russian President Putin, who was visiting Vienna in early June 2018, was invited by the then Austrian Foreign Minister to his wedding, to the surprise of many observers of the political situation alarmed by the growing confrontation between the European Union and Moscow.
Putin came to the wedding with a bouquet of flowers and the Cossacks greeted the newlyweds with popular songs. It is worth mentioning that the Russian leader’s visit to the wedding was only an episodic stop on the way to a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, which took place near Berlin.
K. Kneissl, 53, dressed in a sparkly gown reminiscent of a national costume, seemed especially pleased to meet the Russian leader who came to the wedding ceremony of him and businessman Wolfgang Meilinger.
Gustav Gressel, a former member of the Austrian Defense Ministry and now a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations, hinted to NBC News that Kneissl had used Putin as a “useful idiot” to show that he was not isolated, but vice versa. – has allies in Europe.
This, according to the specialist, is an important message both for the international community and for his country of origin, sent without tension with the West criticizing Russia. “He probably doesn’t even realize it was used,” Gressel said. “She thinks she is more important now and is a good friend of Putin.”
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