Donald Trump Jr spent two days hunting in Mongolia with a Kremlin-linked Russian businessman who previously helped fund his wedding celebrations, according to a new Financial Times investigation, raising questions about potential access to the US president’s family.
What the investigation found
The Financial Times reported on 27 October that Trump Jr was joined in August at a remote hunting camp in western Mongolia by Umar Kremlev, the president of the International Boxing Association (IBA). The newspaper interviewed guides and local officials and examined flight records, social media and other sources to reconstruct the meeting.
Kremlev has well-documented connections to Russia’s political and security establishment. He flew into Mongolia from Kazakhstan with Arthur Martirosov, a businessman associated with Voskhod, a venture fund subject to US sanctions. The fact that a companion is connected to a sanctioned fund does not itself establish that the hunting trip broke sanctions law.
One person present told the FT that Trump Jr and Kremlev appeared cautious about being photographed together. That remains an attributed witness account, not evidence of concealment or wrongdoing. Their representatives have described them as personal friends who share interests in hunting and boxing.
Wedding payments and repayment
The new report follows a ProPublica investigation published on 14 September. It found that a Dubai-based entity associated with Kremlev paid hundreds of thousands of dollars towards parties, an island rental and other expenses during the weekend of Trump Jr’s May wedding to Bettina Anderson in the Bahamas.
Trump Jr and his wife publicly acknowledged that Kremlev had paid for two nights of celebrations after the wedding ceremony. They characterised the payments as a generous gift from a friend. A spokesperson for Trump Jr said Kremlev was not his business associate, and Kremlev’s representatives denied that the men discussed politics.
President Donald Trump said in September that his son intended to pay the money back. On 6 October, Kremlev told the Associated Press that the repayment had been made. Independent public records verifying the exact amount and terms of reimbursement have not been produced.
Counterintelligence concerns
Former US counterintelligence officials told the FT and ProPublica that Russian intelligence agencies may try to exploit relationships with people close to powerful American figures. Their assessments describe a potential vulnerability. They do not amount to a public intelligence finding that Trump Jr was compromised or that the Kremlin directed the arrangements.
Kremlev is personally sanctioned by Ukraine, according to ProPublica, which has documented his connections to individuals in Putin’s circle. His sporting organisation has received financial support from state-backed Gazprom.
Congress and the Mongolia security detail
After ProPublica’s wedding revelations, Democratic congressman Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, requested relevant records. This is a congressional inquiry and not an announced criminal prosecution.
The FT also identified a US embassy payment of $18,715 for hotel rooms for an unspecified Secret Service visit during dates overlapping the Mongolia trip. The records do not establish that taxpayers funded the hunt itself.
What remains unknown
- Whether political or commercial matters were discussed at the hunting camp.
- The complete financial record of the reported repayment.
- Whether US authorities are undertaking any separate investigation.
- Whether the relationship influenced any decision by the US government. No such influence has been established.
The documented relationship merits scrutiny because it involves the president’s family and a businessman connected to Russian power. It should not be presented as proof of foreign control or criminal conduct.
