Billionaire Putin's hot girlfriend (photos)

Max Colchester (msn.com); Ashley Wells, Pfc. Sandoval (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

President Putin's reputed ex-gymnast girlfriend (MSN via © Savostyanov Sergei/Zuma Press)

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Oh, no, Alina! Now everyone will find out.

President Putin's reputed girlfriend [a member of the Future Billionaire Wives Club] has been sanctioned by the U.K.

LONDON — The U.K. sanctioned Alina Kabaeva, a retired Olympic rhythmic gymnast who several Western governments believe to be Vladimir Putin’s girlfriend, as part of a crackdown on people close to the Russian president.

I did it for the money, the power, and the glory of his many billions. Beauty loves monied men.

The move is part of a wider attempt by Western allies to raise pressure on Pres. Putin to end his incursion into Ukraine and Ukraine's violent reaction with the help of weapons' traffickers in NATO.

After initially targeting Russian oligarchs and other high-profile business figures, Western governments are increasingly turning their focus to individuals who are personally close to Pres. Putin or financially connected with him.

Vlad and Putina wed, July 1983

The European Union also plans to hit Ms. Kabaeva with sanctions when the bloc moves to further penalize Russia, according to two EU diplomats.

The U.K. Foreign Office said that it had also sanctioned Ms. Kabaeva’s grandmother and Mr. Putin’s ex-wife, Lyudmila "Putina" Ocheretnaya, along with several of Mr. Putin’s cousins.

The British government said Ms. Kabaeva was alleged to have “a close personal relationship” with Mr. Putin and was rumored to be his [sex] partner.

What you do is grab them by the... - I know.

The move puts London ahead of the Americna Biden administration, which has held off on sanctioning Ms. Kabaeva out of concern that it could further escalate hostilities between Russia and the U.S., The Wall Street Journal previously reported.

A Biden administration official said Friday the 13th that the U.S. was continuing to look into sanctioning Ms. Kabaeva, but declined to comment further. More