Ukraine war: Russian oligarch’s daughter enjoys luxury visit to London despite father’s alleged links to Putin

Alexei Navalny has urged the UK Government to sanction a Russian oligarch with alleged links to Vladimir Putin, after it emerged his daughter has been enjoying luxury holidays in London.

Diana Manasir, daughter of Jordanian-born, Russian billionaire Ziyad Manasir, has shared several photos of herself on Instagram over the summer, in which she can be seen visiting Mayfair, Belgravia, Regent’s Park and the Mandarin Oriental Spa in Knightsbridge.

According to posts to her 313,000 Instagram followers, the fashion influencer - in her mid 20s - stayed in London for around a week from June 27.

That was same day a Russian missile hit a shopping mall in the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk.

Diana - who spends time between Moscow and Jordan - has also been pictured visiting Sardinia, the ski resort of Courchevel and Paris as part of her jet-setting lifestyle.

Russian opposition leader Alexi Navalny has slammed the UK Government for allowing the family of Ziyad Manasir to travel freely in the EU and UK.

In a lengthy thread on Twitter, he wrote: “[Vladimir] Putin’s war with Ukraine has been going on for six months now.

“From day one, Western leaders firmly stated that Putin’s oligarchs would face imminent sanctions and wouldn’t get away this time.

“But they did. This is a rage thread about almost nothing being done.”

Mr Manasir is believed to be closely linked to Putin. He is the founder of Stroygazconsulting, a construction company based in Russia, which reportedly has ties with Russia’s state-owned gas producer, Gazprom.

Stroygazconsulting is also linked to Rosavtodor, the federal agency behind road construction in Russia, with the firm’s projects including the metro construction in Moscow, the Kolyma Highway in Russia’s far east, and various sports facilities.

In Mr Navalny’s thread on Twitter, he alleges that Mr Manasir paid for Putin’s palace in the outskirts of Moscow, adding: “Did he trick Brussels and Downing Street and pass himself off as someone else?

“How else would his whole family still be able to live in the UK and France?”

There is no proof that Mr Manasir paid for “the palace”, but the property in question - which reports suggest belongs to Putin or at least someone very close to him - neighbours a property owned by Mr Manasir.

Before the palace was built, Mr Manasir’s property was known as “the most expensive house in Russia”.

Mr Manasir was also a guest at the wedding of Putin’s younger daughter, Katerina Tikhonova, according to Jordanian news website Al Bawaba.

The UK Government previously said it was committed to sanctioning oligarchs linked to Putin, to help weaken Russia’s attack on Ukraine.

The Foreign Office has sanctioned several Russians with ties to Putin, including former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich.

At the time, a government spokesperson said: “As long as Putin continues his abhorrent assault on Ukraine, we will use sanctions to weaken the Russian war machine.

Referring to the sanctions of oligarch Vladimir Potanin, Russia’s second richest man, and Anna Tsivilena, Putin’s first cousin once removed, the spokesperson continued: “Today’s sanctions show that nothing and no one is off the table, including Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.”

When asked about Mr Navalny’s criticism on social media, the Home Office told NationalWorld that it could not comment on future designations - but added that the Government “continues to make maximum use of our sanctions powers to ensure the strongest possible response to Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.”

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began on 24 February, and the devastating conflict continues to this day - with over 10 million refugees fleeing the war-torn country.

Diana, who studied in London, shared pictures of herself visiting some of the richest areas of the country’s capital in June and July.

This included a trip to Mandarin Oriental Spa in Knightsbridge, where rooms are priced at over £1,000 a night.

She also travelled to Sardinia in April, July and August.

One week after the invasion, she wrote a cryptic message on Instagram.

The influencer told her 313,000 followers: “Friends, I am far from politics and rhetoric on this topic.

“I understand what’s going on. I see, hear, read everything. I, like most, am scared and hurting right now.

“Doing my routine tasks diligently is the only thing that helps me distract myself from anxiety and thoughts of powerlessness. All I can do in these trying times is maintain my mental health, keep working, charity, produce, create courses for you, hold jobs and try to get on with my life.

“And be here from time to time. Exactly how I plan on going. Let there be a little more peaceful content with my Instagram posts. ❤”