Putin’s Longtime Ally Sergei Ivanov Dies at 73

June 26, 2026 Sergei Ivanov. Sergei Vedyashkin / Moskva News Agency Sergei Ivanov, a former Russian defense minister, Kremlin chief of staff and longtime ally of President Vladimir Putin, has died at the age of 73, the VTB United League basketball organization, where he served as honorary president, said Friday. The professional men’s basketball league did not disclose the cause of death. The exiled news outlet Meduza reported that Ivanov was rumored to be suffering from a severe, long-term illness. Putin expressed his “deep condolences” to Ivanov’s friends and relatives in a brief, one-sentence statement published on the Kremlin’s website. Ivanov and Putin first met in the 1970s while both were serving in the Leningrad directorate of the KGB. While Putin transitioned into local politics by joining the St. Petersburg mayor’s office in the 1990s, Ivanov remained in the intelligence services, rising to become a senior officer in the Foreign Intelligence Service. The pair reunited in the late 1990s as Putin rose through the federal government. Putin named Ivanov his deputy at the FSB security service in 1998 and subsequently appointed him secretary of Russia’s Security Council after becoming prime minister in 1999. Ivanov went on to serve as defense minister from 2001 to 2007, spanning nearly the entirety of Putin’s first two presidential terms. During Dmitry Medvedev’s single presidential term, Ivanov served as deputy prime minister under then-Prime Minister Putin between 2008 and 2011. In late 2011, Medvedev named Ivanov chief of staff of the Presidential Administration, a powerful role he held until 2016, when Putin moved him to the position of special representative for environmental protection and transportation. Putin dismissed Ivanov from that post in February, less than a week after he turned 73, which is three years past the standard mandatory retirement age for civil servants. Read more about: Elites , Obituary Sign up for our free weekly newsletter Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy We sent a confirmation to your email. Please confirm your subscription. A Message from The Moscow Times: Dear readers, We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent." These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia. We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help. Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact. By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us. Once Monthly Annual Continue Not ready to support today? Remind me later. × Remind me next month Remind me Thank you! Your reminder is set. We will send you one reminder email a month from now. For details on the personal data we collect and how it is used, please see our Privacy Policy. Read more opinion Casey Michel Roman Abramovich Can Talk to Moscow and Kyiv. But He Can’t Change Putin’s Mind. The sanctioned billionaire is an unlikely backchannel between Russia and Ukraine, having brokered prisoner swaps and grain export deals. 5 Min read opinion Boris Bondarev Kremlin Elites Have No Way to Remove Putin, Even if They Wanted To Russia's elites owe their power and riches to Putin. Unless they see some way to maintain their privileges, none of them will move to unseat him. 7 Min read Chechen Businessman and Ex-Senator Umar Dzhabrailov Found Dead in Apparent Suicide Dzhabrailov was a former business partner of American investor Paul Tatum, who was gunned down in Moscow in 1996. 1 Min read Nikolai Svanidze, Russian Journalist and Ukraine War Critic, Dies Aged 69 Svanidze was known for hosting political and historical talk shows on state-run television in the mid-1990s and early to mid-2000s. 1 Min read