Maria Vorontsova, Vladimir Putin's eldest daughter, was in charge of the Alfa-Endo program at CAF (Charities Aid Foundation) Russia, which was designated a “foreign agent” just yesterday, writes the independent publication Agentstvo.
Alfa-Endo targets children suffering from endocrine disorders. Vorontsova's involvement in the program was reported back in 2016 by The New Times and Reuters.
According to the publication, the foundation's website does not mention Putin's daughter, but its hidden downloads section includes a presentation on Germany’s experience of setting up endocrine care for child patients authored by Maria Faassen (Faassen is the surname of Maria Vorontsova's husband — Dutch national Jorrit Faassen).
In the latest sanctions lists, her project is linked to the names of multiple Alfa Group shareholders, including Mikhail Fridman. “Vladimir Putin’s eldest daughter Maria ran a charity project, Alfa-Endo, which was funded by Alfa Bank,” writes the Official Journal of the European Union among the reasons for sanctioning Alfa Group co-owner Mikhail Fridman.
Fridman recently insisted in an interview to Bloomberg that he has never met Maria Vorontsova (Faassen) and had no idea as to who she is.
CAF Russia was launched in 1993. Its board of directors includes Gleb Prozorov, deputy CEO of the Interfax news agency, and Oleg Sysuev, president of Alfa Bank. The organization provided assistance to charities and fostered philanthropy.