Karin Kneissl, the former Austrian foreign minister who danced with Vladimir Putin at his wedding, is moving to St. Petersburg to work at the G.O.R.K.K.I. academic center (Geopolitical Observatory for Russia’s Key Issues) that she leads, Russian news agency TASS reported on Tuesday, citing News.ro.
“I co-founded the G.O.R.K.K.I. center and I lead it. Because there is a lot of work there and it requires a lot of attention, I cannot do this in passing. I have decided to move to St. Petersburg for this job,” Karin Kneissl said.
Thus, the former Austrian foreign minister will move to St. Petersburg, the hometown of Vladimir Putin.
Karin Kneissl, who invited Putin to her wedding in 2018 and danced with him, was in the media spotlight last month when it was revealed that she rented a house in a village in Russia and stated in an interview with the Russian press that she loves it there.
“Grandparents, apples, summer, swimming in the river. It’s a good life. I don’t need the Maldives or Seychelles. It’s better,” Karin Kneissl said in an interview with the Russian state news agency TASS.
In this interview, the former head of diplomacy in Vienna criticized French President Emmanuel Macron, said that Russian athletes should not be banned from competitions, and also stated that she currently sees no point in a summit for a peace solution for Ukraine, since Kiev does not want to engage in dialogue with Moscow.
In 2018, she invited Putin to her wedding in the Austrian Alps and danced a waltz with him, drawing criticism from opposition leaders.
After leaving politics, Kneissl joined the board of directors of Rosneft, a Russian state oil company – a position she has since left – and became a regular participant in RT broadcasts, Russia’s international propaganda channel.
PHOTO: Hepta
