Biography
Rustam Minnikhanov was born in the village of New Arysh on March 1, 1957. Although the future politician spent his childhood in his native village, he went to the capital of Tatarstan, Kazan, for secondary specialized education. There, Minnikhanov successfully graduated from the Kazan Agricultural Institute in 1978, becoming a mechanical engineer with a major in agricultural mechanization.
In Kazan, Rustam also received a higher education: at the local branch of the Moscow Institute of Soviet Trade. Having completed training at this institute, he became a highly qualified commodity expert with a profile in “commodity research and organization of trade in food products.” Looking ahead a little, we note that in 2003 Minnikhanov received the well-deserved title of Doctor of Economic Sciences.
Rustam Minnikhanov in childhood and youth
The future president of the Republic of Tatarstan began his climb up the career ladder from the position of diagnostic engineer, which he received in the Sabinsky regional association called “Agricultural Equipment” in 1978. Two years after this, Rustam Nurgalievich changed his place of work to the Sabinsky Timber Industry Enterprise, where he worked first as a senior and then as a chief power engineer.
In 1983, Minnikhanov moved from engineering positions to political positions. Thus, until 1985 he was the deputy head of the board of the Sabinsky district, until 1990 - the head of local government of the Arsky district, until 1992 - the chairman of the district executive committee of the Arsky district, until 1993 - the first deputy head of the administration of the same Arsky district, and until 1996 year - already the head of the administration in the Vysokogorsk region.
Rustam Minnikhanov (left) in his youth | About Kazan
Since 1996, Minnikhanov’s political career took off, and he was able to prefer positions in institutions of a republican scale to positions in regional government bodies. From 1996 to 1998, Rustam Nurgalievich worked as the Minister of Finance of Tatarstan, and in 1998 he became the Prime Minister of his native republic.
It is noteworthy that in the summer of 1999, when Minnikhanov was already the head of the regional government, he was also elected chairman of the board of directors of OJSC Tatneft. For reference: this enterprise still provides about 40 percent of all financial revenues to the republican budget. Experts saw in the appointment of the Prime Minister as head of the company’s board of directors the desire of the regional leadership to control the most profitable enterprises of Tatarstan as much as possible.
In 2001, Mintimer Shaimiev, under whom Minnikhanov initially became prime minister, was re-elected to the post of President of Tatarstan. Rustam Nurgalievich also retained his post, heading the new government of the republic. In April 2005, when Shaimiev was again re-elected as president of the region, Minnikhanov again received the post of Prime Minister of Tatarstan in accordance with the resolution of the Republican State Council.
Reasons for sale
In such a situation, the question naturally arises as to what forced Gulsina Akhatovna Minnikhanova to part with such serious assets.
If you believe the official version of the press service of the President of the Republic of Tatarstan, the deal was carried out in order to attract additional funds for the development of new business areas.
It is worth noting that the company that acquired 49% of the shares of the Luciano beauty salon is registered in the British Virgin Islands. So, as often happens in such situations, it is not possible to determine the final owner or beneficiary.
In addition, the press service of the President of the Republic noted that after the completion of the transaction, Gulsina Minnikhanova paid 286 million rubles in taxes. The biography of the first lady of Tatarstan will now sparkle with new colors, many are sure.
At the same time, the heroine of our article remained the full owner of the remaining 51% of the shares of the Luciano health and entertainment complex. And her immediate plans include the launch of a children's SPA complex, which will allow the whole family to fully relax.
At the same time, there is no reliable information about how Gulsina Minnikhanova earned the remaining 150 million rubles in 2020. Her biography still contains many dark spots. To be fair, it is worth noting that she officially owns another large business - the fashionable four-star hotel "Luciano" in Kazan. It has 99 comfortable rooms.
Kyiv rally
A kind of compromising evidence on Rustam Nurgalievich (which, however, did not have much influence on his political career) can be called the Kiev rally organized on May 22, 2007 near the office of the Ukrtatnafta enterprise.
About two dozen young people took part in the event and declared themselves members of radical nationalist parties in Ukraine. The protesters did not put forward any special demands; they only protested against the “seizure of the Kremenchug oil refinery by the government of the Russian Federation.”
“Ukrainian nationalists” spoke Russian during the rally and selflessly accused Vladimir Putin of raiding, shouting relevant slogans and displaying posters with impartial inscriptions. Soon after the rally, information surfaced in the press that the customer of the small but loud action was OJSC Tatneft, in the role of head of the board of directors of which Rustam Minnikhanov acts.
Journalists from many publications suggested that the provocation was necessary for Tatneft in order to aggravate a minor and not very noticeable economic corporate conflict around its activities.
An issue that would have gone unnoticed without all the fuss turned out to be widely covered and transferred to the political plane. Many saw this as a deliberate aggravation of relations between Ukraine and Russia.
Minnikhanova's successes
Gulsina Minnikhanova was born in 1969. She first came to the center of media attention due to her exorbitant income in 2011. It was then that Gulsina Minnikhanova opened a luxurious SPA center in a new location in Kazan. It was located in a six-story mansion, the total area of which was 18 thousand square meters.
The interest in this place for rest and relaxation was enormous. Firstly, due to the fact that such high-class services are rarely encountered. Secondly, because the first lady of Tatarstan owned it.
At that time, journalists already had information that Gulsina Akhatovna Minnikhanova was running a business. These data were based on the publication of income declarations of the regional and federal elite. But the scale of her entrepreneurial activity began to be judged only then.
The income of the Minnikhanov couple grew systematically. In 2009, she declared a little more than 8 million rubles, while her husband declared almost half as much. In 2010, Gulsina Minnikhanova’s income amounted to about 8 million rubles. While the President of Tatarstan was able to earn almost 7.5 million.
With such high indicators, she invariably remained among the leaders in the ranking of the richest wives of domestic governors, constantly falling into the top ten.
President of Tatarstan
On January 22, 2010, Mintimer Shaimiev, who at that time was 73 years old (he spent almost 20 years as President of Tatarstan), announced his withdrawal from the list of candidates for the powers of the head of the region. Shaimiev did this of his own free will two months before his term of office expired. The first president of the republic thanked the head of state for his support and trust and stated that he wants to give way to a younger generation of politicians.
Rustam Minnikhanov | TVNZ
On the same day, Dmitry Medvedev, who at that time was the President of Russia, recommended that the regional State Council give powers to the head of the region, Rustam Minnikhanov. On January 28, this application was submitted for consideration by the State Council, on January 29, the consideration of the issue was scheduled for February 4, and on February 4, Rustam Nurgalievich’s candidacy was approved unanimously.
On March 25, the oath-taking ceremony took place and Minnikhanov officially assumed the powers of the President of Tatarstan. The powers ended in March 2020, and at the same time the republican leader was asked to take the acting post. President of the Republic of Tatarstan before the elections, which took place on September 13, 2020.
In these elections, Rustam Nurgalievich received 94.4% of the votes, and on September 18, 2020, he again officially took office as regional president.
In 2015, the region took an honorable first place in the National Investment Climate Rating, compiled based on the results of the work of all constituent entities of the Russian Federation. In 2016, the Republic of Tatarstan again found itself in first place in this rating.
Rustam Minnikhanov | Business Online
It is also worth noting the first place that Rustam Minnikhanov himself took in the ranking, compiled on the basis of an analysis of the “friendly policy” pursued by regional presidents towards representatives of small and medium-sized businesses.
In 2016, the domestic Civil Society Development Foundation assessed the work of regional governors based on the degree of effectiveness of the measures taken, and in the corresponding rating Rustam Nargalievich also took a very honorable third place.
Hajj to Mecca | MetroNews
The republican leader communicates a lot with the heads of other “Muslim” regions of the country, in particular, among his political friends is the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. In 2013, the President made the Hajj to Mecca, visiting Saudi Arabia on a political visit.
The President of the Republic of Tatarstan is known for his rather bold statements and decisions regarding the economic, social, and political spheres of society in his region, and for the fact that he regularly scolds officials if he is dissatisfied with their work, instead of maintaining the appearance of general prosperity.
About the personal life of Guzel Minnekhanova
It is already clear that the talented Tatar singer is married: judging by the numerous colorful photographs and interesting posts on Instagram and VK, she is happily married. But fans of any “star” are always interested in how the young people met, got to know each other, and got married. Of course, everyone is interested in what their family situation is like and whether they have children.
Guzel Minnekhanova with her husband. Photo https://www.instagram.com/guzelem_official/
This happened in 2013: Salavat was then working in Aznakaevo as the head of the cultural department, and Guzel (this has already been mentioned) also moved to this department after working as an accountant. Their first meeting took place in the city of Almetyevsk: the couple spoke about this fact in the program “Secrets of Tatar Cuisine,” where they were invited in 2016. Then they both left the cultural department - first Salavat, then the girl. This is what the singer himself said about the beginning of their collaboration and at the same time about what influenced their future in terms of their personal lives: “Closer to winter, I suggested that Guzel make videos, and we went to Egypt for the shooting.” Two video clips were shot there, one for Salavat (where Guzel became the main character), the second for a girl (where the main character was Minnekhatov).
https://www.instagram.com/guzelem_official/
It’s interesting that they went to shoot video clips in Egypt without any scripts at all - Salavat also talked about this. The plan was to work on the scripts on site, and this was done successfully: filming two videos took ten days. It was on that trip to Egypt that the artist, as he admitted, drew attention to the girl as a future wife. Here are his words: “She worked so professionally, followed all instructions so clearly and quickly, that I understood: she would make an ideal wife. But I judged it not only by working moments - it was then that a “spark” of feelings ran between us.” And without fail, after this, Salavat added many times, laughing: “I also understood one important thing: she will be the woman who can tolerate me!”
The wedding took place in the same year, and it was a grandiose event, held in full accordance with national Tatar traditions. According to Salavat, all his life he will remember the moment when he entered the bride’s house before the wedding: “When I entered, I saw her, and she struck me again to the very heart - so tender and charming.” Their married life, which began in complete harmony and love, continued in the same happy atmosphere. A year later, in September 2014, Guzelem wrote on her social networks: “Exactly a year has passed since we said the magic word “Yes” to each other.” I can’t describe how much happiness, love and care I received from the best husband in the world!”
Like any loving couple, they dreamed of children, and in 2018 the Minnekhanovs pleased their fans with good news: Guzelem will soon become a mother, she is expecting a child. In truth, even before this news, audiences at their concerts noticed that her figure had changed, and speculation was already being made about her “interesting” state of health. After the fact of pregnancy was made public, the young woman gladly shared details of her life with fans and told how she was preparing for the birth of a baby.
https://www.instagram.com/guzelem_official/
On her Instagram you can find blocks of colorful photographs where the expectant mother is captured with her husband; in all the photos she is in unimaginably beautiful national costumes. At the beginning of January, Salavat himself published good news on the Internet: on January 7, he and Guzel gave birth to a girl, whom they gave the name Madina. Happy dad and mom shared their joy first of all on Instagram. The father of the newborn Madina wrote there: “Welcome to the family, our daughter!”, and his wife posted a post: “I became a mother for the first time! We've been waiting for you!" After the birth of the baby, photos of parents with their growing daughter began to appear most often on their social networks.
Computerization of the republic
Rustam Minnikhanov is an ardent admirer of the achievements of scientific and technological progress. From 2010 to 2012, on his initiative, a young specialist, Nikolai Nikiforov, now the Minister of Communications and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation, worked as the Minister of Information and Communications of the region. Partly with his help, Rustam Nurgalievich introduced an advanced “electronic government” system in the region.
Rustam Minnikhanov | TVNZ
All persons holding senior government positions in Tatarstan were equipped with iPhones. Moreover, the president has prohibited his subordinates from using paper for notes, and he conducts meetings primarily via video link.
It is worth noting that this is a very progressive solution, especially for remote areas of the republic. Modern information terminals began to be used to process government services, and laptops were purchased for schools located in the region.
Rustam Minnikhanov | Kazanreporter
It is noteworthy that the President of Tatarstan also recognizes the merit of virtual social networks in providing prompt and reliable information. By his order, a whole course of closed lectures was held for the heads of regional departments on the correct use of Instagram, Twitter and other popular social networks. Rustam Nurgalievich attended these lectures together with his subordinates.
Biography of the singer
Despite Guzel’s general openness to the general public, the girl very carefully hides her age. But we managed to find out that the singer was born on July 28, 1995.
Minnekhanova was born in the Republic of Tatarstan. She speaks of her nationality with special respect and pride. Guzelen is a Tatar who reveres all the traditions of her people. The artist’s family lives according to Tatar rules in the most classical sense.
Guzelem grew up in a very decent family, only thanks to her wonderful parents the girl became a wonderful wife and mother.
Also, devotion to national traditions was passed on to the artist with her mother’s milk.
Childhood and youth
Little Guzel studied in a regular secondary school. Even as a child, the child showed a genuine interest in music. But fate decreed otherwise; after graduating from school, the girl entered a technical school, graduating from it, she received a specialization as an accountant. The girl speaks of her parents with great love and gratitude.
The photos she posts on social networks are direct confirmation of this.
As a child, Guzelem was a very modest and shy child. Perhaps these qualities did not allow the girl to immediately choose a profession that she liked.
The path to popularity
The undying craving for music, which first appeared in childhood, found its way out after graduating from college. The girl got a job in her specialty, but working as an accountant did not allow Minnekhanova’s singing talent to develop.
Guzelem made a very difficult decision for herself and changed her path. She got a job in the cultural department and there, for the first time, she was able to express herself. She recorded a song together with a very famous Bashkir singer. This track was a huge success among Tatar youth.
In 2013, the singer entered into her first contract with a very famous producer. This center was headed by one of the most popular singers on the Tatar stage - Salavat Minnekhanov, with whom they later began to meet.
First success
The joint work of Guzel and Salavat brought more and more success every day.
And at the end of 2013, the young people got married. This moment can be considered the beginning of a successful career for singers.
The most famous married couple in the Republic of Tatarstan - Salavat and Guzelem - tour together around their native republic, shoot videos, and conduct all kinds of entertainment events.
The main success came to the Tatar singer thanks to the Internet. Not only music, but also interesting blogs dedicated to cooking made Minnehanova famous.
Present and creative plans for the future
Despite all its popularity, Guzel and his husband created an interesting and unusual project for the Tatar stage. Disco "TatarStar" is a musical event to which young people invite famous artists. The only condition is that the media personality must come with his significant other. And the audience and guests will get to know the artist’s loved one.
Guzel, in addition to her creative career, became seriously interested in business. The girl opened a store that offers Tatar women a huge selection of national scarves. After her first success in business, the girl decided to expand her boundaries and created an online store where Tatar beauties can not only choose a headdress for themselves, but also learn a master class on tying it.
About manure
Rustam Minnikhanov’s statements about manure are widely known among the people: on popular websites you can even find a video where the President of Tatarstan is indignant at the innovation in the field of agriculture.
The point is that from July 1, 2016, mandatory licensing for the management of poultry and livestock waste was introduced. At the same time, at the time of the famous statement, only one enterprise in the entire republic received documents for obtaining the appropriate license - Kamsky Bacon LLC.
As Ruslan Minnikhanov quite rightly noted, in many farms, poultry and livestock waste (which primarily includes manure) is not waste in the literal sense of the word, since it is subsequently used as fertilizer for crop production purposes. A farm in this context should be considered as an enterprise for the production of fertilizers, which gives rise to a number of other difficulties.
In conclusion, the president promised that no one in the republic would curtail production or impose fines because of an ill-conceived law.
Creation
Guzel performs all his musical compositions exclusively in the Tatar language. Video clips have already been shot for many of her songs, which can be found freely available on the Internet.
But she managed to become famous throughout the country not only thanks to her charming voice and attractive appearance, but also to the young performer Salavat Minnekhanov. The couple are very popular at corporate events and weddings, being the most beautiful and singing couple in Tatarstan.
At the moment, they continue to actively perform and delight the audience not only with their musical compositions, but also with their immense love for each other.
Guzel performs all his musical compositions exclusively in the Tatar language
Accident incident
However, despite the rather positive image of the Tatarstan president, his reputation cannot be called absolutely pure, and Minnikhanov’s family plays an important role in this problem. So, in 2014, Ramil, the nephew of the President of Tatarstan, got into an accident in his Range Rover car in Almetyevsk. He drove into the oncoming lane and hit a 16-year-old pedestrian who was just standing at a bus stop.
Road accident of Ramil Minnikhanov | Moscow's comsomolets
The incident was widely publicized. Ramil Minnikhanov was justified by the fact that he allegedly tried to avoid a collision with a male pedestrian who suddenly appeared on the roadway, but no evidence of this was found.
Ramil Minnikhanov | Moscow's comsomolets
The teenager, who was hit by the president's nephew in an expensive foreign car, died from his injuries. However, no criminal case was opened against Ramil, since, according to the local police, he did not have the opportunity to avoid a collision with the victim.
Property and income
The family income of R. N. Minnikhanov for 2011 amounted to 11 million rubles. The Minnikhanov family owns real estate with a total area of 564 m² and 21.9 acres of land. In 2010, the president’s family income amounted to 15.5 million rubles[18].
At the end of 2020, he took third place in the ranking of civil servants’ income “Power and Money” by Forbes magazine with an amount of 2.358 billion rubles[19].
According to the declaration published in May 2020[20], the total income of the Minnikhanovs in 2020 amounted to 145 million rubles[21].
Personal life
Rustam Minnikhanov’s first wife (and at the moment the only one) is Gulsina Akhatovna. Her main occupation, in addition to family worries, today is maintaining her own prestigious beauty salon called “Luciano Beauty Studio”, which is located in the capital of Tatarstan.
Rustam Minnikhanov with his wife | Kommersant
The first lady of the republic named her salon in honor of Luciano De Aloia, an Italian hairdresser who specially flies to Kazan from Geneva once a month. The cost of services in the salon ranges from several hundred to several thousand dollars. According to the results of 2010, Gulsina Minnikhanova earned more than 8 million rubles a month and was among the TOP 10 richest wives of governors.
Rustam Minnikhanov with his son Iskander | TVNZ
Two sons were born into the family of the President of Tatarstan: Irek Minnikhanov and Iskander Minnikhanov. On November 17, 2013, the eldest son of the Minnikhanov couple died tragically as a result of a plane crash in Kazan. That day, a Boeing with fifty people on board burned down due to an explosion of fuel tanks while landing at Kazan airport.
After the disaster, Ruslan Nurgalievich was inconsolable. Speaking about the tragedy in Kazan, he could barely hold back his tears, and only responsibility for the fate of the entire republic did not allow him to lose heart.
Irek Minnikhanov with his wife | Sekunde
The death of his son, fortunately, did not entail the death of his daughter-in-law: Irek, as if anticipating a tragedy, dissuaded his pregnant wife from flying with him. And in 2013, the regional governor had a granddaughter.
Today, Rustam Minnikhamov and his wife have more or less coped with the loss; they are raising the younger brother of their deceased first-born and a charming granddaughter. Now Rustam Nurgalievich again dreams of how he will raise and marry his son, and how they will all live as a big and friendly family.
Beauty salon and SPA center
The beauty and fashion industry, which Gulsina Akhatovna Minnikhanova took seriously, allowed her to significantly increase the family budget. By the way, she named her SPA center in Kazan after the famous hairdresser from Italy named Luciano de Aloia. By the way, he specially flew for a whole month from Geneva to Kazan on the days when the beauty salon was launched in order to directly give the necessary instructions and orders.
The spa was built on Ostrovsky Street. His regular visitors were the wives of local officials, businessmen, as well as top managers of large business groups based in the capital of the republic.
Sport
Minnikhamov’s height is 167 cm and his weight is about 70 kg, while the President of Tatarstan has always been distinguished by his athletic build and love for such a sport as racing. He is an Honored Master of Sports, a professional racer, and a winner of many Russian and European auto racing championships.
Rustam Minnikhanov | 7sportnews
In addition, the politician plays hockey well, and in November 2016 he even took part in an international friendly match in Kazan.
Hobby
Rustam Minnikhanov is an Honored Master of Sports of the Russian Federation. He is a great motorsport enthusiast[31][32] and a professional racing driver, regularly participating in Tatarstan, Russian and international competitions, including European championships. In 2001, he was the winner of the prestigious Silver Boat autocross race. In 2001, 2002 and 2003 he became the champion of Russia in autocross in the top D2 class. In 2004 and 2005, he became a bronze medalist at the European Autocross Championship in the top D1 class. Multiple winner of Russian championships in autocross, rallycross and winter track racing[33][34]. Having become the President of Tatarstan, he continues to participate in certain motorsport competitions. Multiple laureate and winner of the President of Tatarstan Cups in autocross and rallycross, including already being the President of Tatarstan.
Freely controls a helicopter[35].
