“I danced with Putin at my wedding”
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March 07, 2022 – 10:11 p.m Clock
Dirndl, mountain idyll and right in the middle Vladimir Putin: These are images that seem absolutely surreal today. But the Russian President was at the wedding of Austria’s Australian Foreign Minister, Karin Kneissl, in 2018 – and even danced a waltz with the happy bride. Despite the Ukraine war, the 57-year-old seems to be sticking to her friendship with the Kremlin boss. When asked by RTL whether she regrets that Putin was at her wedding, the ex-politician resolutely replies “No”.
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Austria: Karin Kneissl dances a waltz with Putin at her wedding
“Thank you so much for coming. It’s such an honour,” Karin Kneissl greets the man at her wedding in 2018, who is responsible for the suffering and death of many people in Ukraine. But that’s not all, Putin even finds personal words for the bridal couple and gives a speech in German. Then the highlight: Karin Kneissl dances a waltz to the Russian President.
Kneissl explains in an interview that Putin’s visit to her wedding was a coincidence. The Russian President was in Vienna in 2018 for a mixture of state and work visits. Exactly on the day Kneissl’s wedding invitations came from the printer: “I still had one in my hand. Then I asked my fiancé if we should give it to President Putin.”
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After Putin was a wedding guest: Kneissl leaves Austria because of hostilities
Already in 2018, Putin’s visit to her wedding was not without controversy. Karin Kneissl then left Austria. “I had to flee, I didn’t go voluntarily,” she claims to RTL. Due to the many hostilities and a “de facto work ban”, as she calls it, she now lives in southern France. Because of her closeness to Putin, no one wanted to work in Austria anymore.
Even today, she does not distance herself from the Russian President and his actions in Ukraine. it quickly seems as if she understands: “There are no more flight connections from Europe and North America. Those are huge sanctions,” she comments.
Reading tip: UN: Europe faces worst refugee crisis since World War II
Was Putin’s wedding invitation just calculation?
In Styria, in Austria, some accuse Kneissl of calculation. They are said to have invited Putin to get a job at the Russian state-owned company Rosneft. She has been on its supervisory board since 2021 – like former Chancellor Schröder. She is said to be getting $500,000 for it. Giving up is not an option for them. Her reason: “I’m put under total pressure and my life has already been destroyed.” (jmu)
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