Trump says son will pay back Russian oligarch over wedding festivities

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that his son, Donald Trump Jr., plans to repay Russian businessman Umar Kremlev after reports that Kremlev funded wedding celebrations for him in the Bahamas in May, Reuters reported.

Democrats in the US Congress launched an investigation this week into reports that Kremlev, a wealthy Russian businessman and president of the International Boxing Association, paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for the wedding festivities.

ProPublica, which first reported Kremlev's involvement, said he has close ties to the Russian government.

Trump said he asked his son about the reports and that Don Jr. told him he would repay Kremlev.

"'No, I'm paying it back, Dad,'" Trump quoted his son as saying. "And that was a while ago. So I heard he's paying."

A person familiar with the situation also confirmed that Don Jr. planned to reimburse Kremlev.

Kremlev and the International Boxing Association did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Trump, who did not attend his son's wedding, earlier said he did not know Kremlev and dismissed the controversy as "not a big deal".

On Friday, Trump said he had hosted wedding parties for "numerous people" at "beautiful places" such as his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida.

"They get married, I give them a party," Trump said. "With all of that being said, I understand that Don's paid him back."

Don Jr.'s wife, Bettina Trump, said in an Instagram post on Monday that Kremlev was a friend who had extended an "extraordinarily generous wedding gift". She clarified that Kremlev paid for two after-parties, rather than the wedding itself.- EndsPublished By: Zafar ZaidiPublished On: Sep 19, 2026 04:02 IST