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Donald Trump Jr. spent two days hunting in Mongolia with Umar Kremlyov — a Russian businessman with a criminal conviction and close ties to the personal security service of Russia’s ruler, Vladimir Putin. The meeting took place in August and drew attention because of the president’s son’s ties to someone from Putin’s circle.
This was reported by the Financial Times, citing testimony from local guides and officials, aircraft movement data, social media posts, and public records.
At the end of August, Trump Jr. arrived in Mongolia’s capital, Ulaanbaatar, and then traveled hundreds of kilometers to a hunting camp in the Uvurkhangai province. He stayed there with hunting guides, drivers, and cooks.
27 in August, Umar Kremlyov, president of the International Boxing Association (IBA), left the organization’s press conference in Kazakhstan and took a charter flight overnight to Ulaanbaatar. From there he went to Trump Jr.’s camp. He was accompanied by Russian businessman Artur Martirosov, a partner in the Voskhod venture fund, which is under U.S. sanctions.
A local participant in the trip told the Financial Times that Trump Jr. and Kremlyov avoided taking photos together. At the same time, Kremlyov posted a Telegram video showing his group preparing to hunt at dawn. Trump Jr. did not appear in the footage, but two hunting organizers who worked for him were present.
A representative for Trump Jr. said the men’s relationship was personal, not business.
“Donald made clear that his ties to Umar are personal and friendly, not business,” the representative said, adding that a mutual acquaintance from hunting circles introduced them.
“Their friendship is largely based on a shared love of hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation. No one should be surprised that earlier this year they went hunting together,” the representative added.
According to one of the guides, during the trip Trump Jr. killed an Altai argali — a rare wild sheep that is endangered and valued for its large horns. Beginning in 2019, the president’s son has hunted at least two more such animals in Mongolia.
After two days at the camp, Kremlyov returned to Ulaanbaatar and from there went to Yakutsk for IBA-sanctioned competitions. Trump Jr. remained in Mongolia for another week, traveling from the Uvurkhangai province to Bayan-Ölgii, where he hunted Altai ibex.
Risks of ties to people in Putin’s circle
Golden Triplett, who served as director of counterintelligence on the U.S. National Security Council during Donald Trump’s first presidential term, said such contacts can create opportunities for manipulation by Russian intelligence services.
“It really doesn’t matter how sincere and honest people’s intentions are. Once Russian intelligence learns that someone has ties to a person of significant interest to them, they will certainly try to use that as a tool of influence,” he said.
The Mongolia meeting followed Kremlyov’s attendance at Trump Jr.’s wedding celebrations in May on a private Caribbean island, where he paid for part of the expenses. ProPublica previously reported on the Russian businessman’s participation in the wedding. The president later said his son reimbursed Kremlyov.
Kremlyov has a criminal record and ties to Russian power circles
According to the Financial Times, Umar Kremlyov’s road to wealth was linked to his proximity to the power elite. Court records obtained by the newspaper show that in his youth, when he was still known as Umar Lutfulloev, he was convicted of extortion and causing bodily harm.
In 2010 he changed his Tajik surname to Kremlyov. He later became a boxing promoter and in 2017 he headed the Russian Boxing Federation. In 2020 he was elected president of the IBA. The organization received substantial funding from the state-controlled Gazprom.
The position enabled Kremlyov to travel extensively. In May of this year he joined Vladimir Putin’s delegation during a visit to China.
The first known meeting between Kremlyov and Trump Jr. took place last year in Istanbul at an IBA-hosted event. At that time, the president’s son called the Russian businessman “not just a leader, but a friend.”
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Син Трампа літав на полювання з олігархом Путіна, – FT". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: UNIAN.
