Who is Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Ocheretnaya? The former wife of Russian President Vladimir Putin, her early life, marriages, career, and current life away from the public eye. (Image Credit: X/ @2025willbeepic)
With global focus once more firmly fixed on Russian President Vladimir Putin as he embarks on a much-watched diplomatic visit to India in December 2025 aimed at strengthening bilateral ties, attention has naturally shifted toward figures associated with his past, including his former wife, Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Ocheretnaya.
Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Ocheretnaya, née Shkrebneva and formerly known as Lyudmila Putina, is a Russian linguist, former First Lady of Russia, and the ex-wife of Vladimir Putin.
Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Ocheretnaya is 67 years old, and she was born on the 6th day of January, 1958.
In her childhood, Lyudmila lived in Kaliningrad. Her father, Alexander Shkrebnev, was employed at the Kaliningrad Mechanical Plant.
She studied linguistics and in 1986, graduated from the Spanish-language and philology branch of the Department of Philology at Leningrad State University.
Lyudmila married twice; her first husband was Vladimir Putin, whom she married on 28 July 1983.
Following her divorce from Putin, she married her new husband, Artur Ocheretny, around 2015.
As Lyudmila Putina, she served as First Lady of Russia when Putin was in office. Her public profile was relatively low; she rarely sought publicity and carried out only limited ceremonial duties.
The couple divorced because they “barely saw each other” because of Putin’s hectic schedule. Their divorce was formalised in 2014.
Her new husband, Artur Ocheretny, is reportedly the head of the Centre for the Development of Interpersonal Communications (CDIC), a foundation under her patronage.
After remarriage, she changed her surname to “Ocheretnaya” and appears under that name in public-record property documents.
While with Putin, Lyudmila was the First Lady of Russia.
Before that, she had worked as a lecturer of German at the Leningrad State University between 1990 and 1994.
She also briefly worked as the Moscow representative of the company Telecominvest from 1998 to 1999.
As First Lady, she reportedly championed efforts to preserve the Russian language-notably opposing orthographic reform proposals in the early 2000s.
Yes, Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Ocheretnaya is alive.
Estimating net worth for someone like Lyudmila Ocheretnaya is complicated. Public reports put her net worth at approximately USD 5 million, due to business ventures and property holdings acquired after her divorce.
