Former Russian Defense Minister Sergey Ivanov Dies at 73 Sergey Ivanov’s death at 73 closes the chapter on the Kremlin insider who came closest to succeeding Vladimir Putin—then ended up protecting leopards instead of running Russia. His passing is prompting very different epitaphs from state media and opposition outlets.

The Kremlin’s version: loyal confidant, no lost crown

Pro-government RT frames him first as a stalwart of Putin’s system: a “longtime confidant” and ex-defense minister whose career flowed smoothly from KGB officer to Security Council chief and then to top cabinet posts. The succession drama is downplayed; Ivanov is merely “once widely seen as a potential contender” for the presidency, who “repeatedly dismissed speculation about presidential ambitions” and dutifully backed Dmitry Medvedev once Putin chose him.

In this telling, Ivanov is the ideal soldier of the state: polished (fluent in English, even Swedish), competent, and unquestioningly loyal.

The opposition’s version: almost-president in a system that crushed him

Independent outlets stress the road not taken. Meduza bluntly notes that Ivanov was “once considered a possible successor to Putin” and then lost an “internal power struggle” over the succession. Another Meduza feature goes further, calling him “Russia’s almost-president” who “wound up saving leopards instead of succeeding Putin.”

Novaya Gazeta Europe echoes this framing, describing him as one of “Putin’s associates who never became his successor” and underscoring that he was long seen as “one of the most influential people in Russian politics” before his influence ebbed.

Same biography, different moral

Both sides agree on the raw facts: ex-defense minister, Security Council secretary, head of the presidential administration, environmental envoy, dead at 73 after being “considered a potential successor.” But the Kremlin narrative sells a loyal functionary who fulfilled his role, while the opposition presents a system so personalized that even its most powerful insiders could be casually sidelined—from almost-president to caretaker of leopards and basketball leagues.