US Congress will investigate Russian oligarch who financed Donald Trump Jr's wedding, says Reuters

Democrats in the US Congress have launched an investigation following reports that a Russian oligarch paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for the wedding celebrations of Donald Trump Jr.

Source: European Pravda, citing Reuters

Details: The Democrats' move follows a ProPublica investigation revealing that Umar Kremlev, a wealthy Russian businessman and president of the International Boxing Association (IBA), paid for Trump Jr's wedding celebrations in the Bahamas in May.

The investigation uncovered that Kremlev may have provided hundreds of thousands of dollars to cover the costs of Trump Jr's wedding.

It also highlighted Kremlev's close ties to the Russian government.

"Why is a Russian oligarch and friend ​of Vladimir Putin financially supporting the President's son? What does Umar Kremlev expect in return for funding ​this three-day wedding in the Bahamas?" said Congressman Robert Garcia.

Garcia currently serves as the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and would take over as chairman if his party wins control of the House in November's midterm elections.

The US president's son declined to comment, while his wife Bettina stated in an Instagram post on Monday 14 September that Kremlev is a friend who made an "extraordinarily generous wedding gift", emphasising that he paid for two after-parties rather than the wedding itself.

Trump himself, who did not attend his son's wedding, stated that he does not know Kremlev and that the controversy surrounding the wedding is "not a big deal".

Garcia and other leading House Democrats have been preparing investigations into Trump, his family and ethics questions that have arisen since the start of the president's second term in January 2025.

On Tuesday 15 September, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York described the wedding arrangements as "so corrupt, so venal, so endangering our national security".

"You are dealing with a Russian oligarch, not just a cousin who's giving you a gift... sometimes a wedding gift is a bribe from a foreign autocrat," he stressed.

In this context, it is also worth noting that on 7 August, the US Senate passed a Russia sanctions bill by 86 votes in favour. This piece of legislation was co-authored by the late Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal.

On 14 September, the bill cleared the House Rules Committee, after which it passed another procedural hurdle in the House of Representatives, paving the way for a floor vote as early as Wednesday.

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