German journalist accused of receiving payments for supporting Putin

Seipel, a well-known journalist, documentary filmmaker, and author, who produced a film about Vladimir Putin and penned several books about him, is said to have received hundreds of thousands of euros from companies connected to Alexey Mordashov, an oligarch close to Putin.

It can be recalled that two of Seipel's books on Putin, "Putin: Inner Views of Power" and "Putin's Power: Why Europe Needs Russia", have been translated into several languages, achieving bestseller status with tens of thousands of copies sold.

Seipel has been deeply involved with Russia for many years, not only as a researcher but also as a journalist. He has had close to a hundred interactions with the Russian president, according to "Ukrainian Truth".

It is only recently that secret financial ties have been uncovered, linking Seipel to companies affiliated with the Russian oligarch Alexey Mordashov over several years.

"The Guardian" has obtained documents that suggest Seipel signed a "sponsorship agreement" in 2018 under which he was to receive at least $677,000. The agreement appears to have been drawn up with De Vere Worldwide Corporation based in the British Virgin Islands.

The funding, according to the agreement, was intended for the creation and publication of a book analyzing the "political climate in Russia". This book, titled "Putin's Power: Why Europe Needs Russia", was published in 2021 by the prestigious Hamburg-based publisher Hoffmann und Campe.

Alexey Mordashov, a regular figure on Forbes' list of Russian billionaires, boasted an estimated worth of nearly $30 billion in 2021 (positioning him fifth this year). There are claims that he was one of the financial contributors to the construction of Putin's palace near Gelendzhik.