Igor Sechin

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Igor Ivanovich Sechin (Russian: Игорь Иванович Сечин, born September 7, 1960, Leningrad, Soviet Union) is a Russian politician and businessman, who is considered a close ally of Vladimir Putin.

Igor Sechin graduated from Leningrad State University in 1984 as a linguist fluent in Portuguese and French languages. In the 1980s Igor Sechin worked in Mozambique and in Angola, officially as an interpreter with Soviet trade and diplomatic missions there. According to a number of allegations he was a KGB resident in these African countries. [1]

In 1991-1996 he worked with St. Petersburg Mayor's Office, since 1994 as a Chief of Staff of the First Deputy Mayor, Vladimir Putin. In 1996-1997 he was a Deputy of Putin, who worked in the Presidential Property Management Department.

In 1997-1998 Sechin was the chief of the General Department of the Main Control Directorate attached to the President, led by Putin. In August 1999 he was appointed Head of the Secretariate of the Prime Minister of Russia, Vladimir Putin. In November 24, 1999, - January 11, 2000, Sechin was the First Deputy Chief of the Russian presidential administration.

Between December 31, 1999 and May 2008 he was Deputy Chief of Putin's administration.

In May 2008 he was appointed by President Dmitry Medvedev First Deputy Prime-Minister in a move seen by analysts as demotion.^[1]

Since July 27, 2004 he has been the Chairman of the Board of Directors of JSC Rosneft, which swallowed up the assets of jailed tycoon Khodorkovsky's Yukos to become the biggest oil company in the world. Khodorkovsky has accused Igor Sechin of plotting to have him arrested and plundering his oil company: "The second as well as the first case were organised by Igor Sechin. He orchestrated the first case against me out of greed and the second out of cowardice." ^[2]

Igor Sechin is married. Since 2003 his daughter Inga has been married to Dmitry Ustinov, son of Vladimir Ustinov. Inga and Dmitry have a son (b. 2005).