Putin minister critical of war with Ukraine dies after falling ill on flight home from Cuba

In the mystery of a series of deaths among Moscow’s elites, a minister in Vladimir Putin’s government critical of the war with Ukraine died of unknown causes after falling ill on an airplane while returning to his country after participating in the XX session of the Cuba-Russia Intergovernmental Commission.

Regard Deputy Minister of Science Pyotr Kucherenko, 46, who fell seriously ill on a flight from Havana on Saturday and died on his return, CNN reported. Relatives spoke of cardiac arrest

Journalist Roman Super, who fled Russia shortly after the invasion of Ukraine, told Telegram he spoke with Kucherenko “for a few days” before fleeing and said the deputy minister, a critical of the war, he feared for his safety.

“Kucherenko he fell ill during the plane ride with a Russian delegation returning from a business trip to Cuba. The plane landed in the town of Mineralnye Vody, where doctors tried to provide assistance,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that the minister could be saved.

Kucherenko’s family said his death could have been caused by a heart problem, but they are waiting for the result of an autopsy scheduled for tomorrow.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he did not know the cause of Kucherenko’s death.

According to journalist Román Super, in their last conversation dating back to February 2022, the minister urged him to “leave as soon as possible” and fleeing a country where the state is “brutal“.

According to the journalist, Kureshenko confided that he was taking antidepressants and tranquilizers, that he was sleeping little and that “we are all taken hostage, no one can say anythingotherwise we will immediately be crushed like insects”.

He also said he could not escape because the passports of Russian officials had been “taken away”. Furthermore, Kureshenko allegedly called the invasion of Ukraine “fascist”.

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel has expressed his regret over the death of Russian Deputy Minister Kucherenko.

“It is with deep sorrow that we learned of the death of Russian Deputy Minister Piotr Aleksandrovich Kucherenko, upon his return to his country after the Intergovernmental Commission was held in our nation,” Díaz-Canel tweeted.

“Our deepest condolences go out to their families, the Russian government and the people,” he said.

The senior official was returning from Havana, where he was part of the delegation led by the deputy president of the Russian government, Dimitri Chernishenko, which attended the XX session of the intergovernmental commission between the two countries.

The Minister of Science, Technology and Environment of Cuba, Elba Rosa Pérez Montoya, who met Kucherenko during his stay on the island, also expressed his condolences.

“We deeply regret the death of the young Deputy Minister of Science and Education. Our condolences to the Russian government, the people and his family,” Pérez Montoya said on Twitter.