Russians reeled on Friday from the shock announcement by President Vladimir Putin that his 30-year marriage was over, a break-up that was long an open secret but few imagined would ever be made public.

In a highly choreographed joint interview with state television after attending a ballet together, Putin's wife Lyudmila said they were having a "civilized divorce" and revealed that the pair hardly ever saw each other.

Lyudmila said she was grateful to Putin for supporting her, while Putin praised the fact she had "stood guard" for the almost nine years he has served as president.

"We are always going to be very close to each other. I am sure, forever," Putin said.

It was an extraordinarily frank statement for any Russian politician, whose private lives are generally out of bounds. But particularly for Putin, who has never been officially photographed with his two adult daughters.

The end of the marriage of the Russian president and Lyudmila less than two months shy of their 30th anniversary came on state television after a Thursday evening that started out like a model of domestic contentment - a devoted husband taking his wife out for an artsy interlude.

After the performance of La Esmeralda at the Great Kremlin Palace, the two came into a luxurious room to speak to a reporter.

"Excellent. Great music, excellent production," Putin said and Lyudmila echoed his praise.

After about a minute, the reporter asked about rumors that the two didn't live together. Putin smiled slightly, like a boy caught misbehaving, and turned his head toward Lyudmila. "This is so," he said.

It wasn't immediately clear if that meant just separate domiciles. After a few more comments, the reporter gently prodded: "I am afraid to say this word 'divorce'."

"Yes, this is a civilized divorce," Lyudmila said.

In the aftermath, Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied the 60-year-old president was planning to remarry, telling the Echo of Moscow radio station: "I can say for sure that this is more about rumors and tittle-tattle."

Peskov said Putin's packed schedule means "his life is not linked in any way to any family relations".

Sudden announcement

The reason for the timing of the announcement is unclear.

In May in a public phone-in, Putin said his work was his "whole life. I don't know if that is enough for happiness."

Lyudmila, 55, a former flight attendant, revealed in their interview that she disliked flying and was averse to publicity, factors that had made the marriage impossible.

Peskov said the couple had not yet filed for divorce, asking for respect for their privacy.

On Friday, the story dominated the Internet, with many praising Putin for speaking frankly.

"This is all honest, without falseness," wrote Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper on its website.

"What is sensational is that what everyone guessed has been officially confirmed," wrote Moskovsky Komsomolets daily on its website.

"Putin very rarely acts honestly. The announcement about divorce is honest," wrote former cabinet minister-turned-opposition politician Boris Nemtsov on Facebook.

"For years I heard how good it would be if Putin told the truth and divorced. What now? Everyone is criticizing him for divorcing. That's low," said television host and protest activist Ksenia Sobchak on Twitter.

Putin is now "the country's most eligible bachelor", journalist Andrei Kolesnikov, who has close access to the Kremlin, joked on his Russky Pioneer magazine website.

Putin and Lyudmila have been seen together extremely rarely in the last few years and their last public appearance seems to date back to May 2012 after Putin was inaugurated for a third term in office.

In recent years Putin has usually appeared at official functions, including foreign visits, alone - even when the presence of the first lady was expected according to protocol.

Putin, who was then working as a KGB agent, married Lyudmila Shkrebneva in July 1983, before he started his posting in the East German city of Dresden in 1985.

They first met in Putin's home city of Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) when Lyudmila came for a short visit with a girlfriend. A friend introduced them.

According to his biography on his official website, Putin proposed three years later.

"I knew that if I did not get married in two or three years, then I never would," Putin is quoted as saying.

AFP - AP

(China Daily 06/08/2013 page11)