Russian President Putin and his wife have officially divorced.

The couple announced at the Kremlin that their marriage was now over.

In an interview with state-run television channel Russia24, President Putin said, "This was a joint decision of the two of us."

First Lady Lyudmila Putin, standing next to President Putin on June 6 after watching a ballet performance, also confirmed this to the media.

She said, "I don't like appearing in public so much, and having to take frequent flights is inconvenient for me."

This marks the first public appearance of the two in over a year. At a recent ceremony, President Putin was accompanied by Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin.

However, Mrs. Putin said they "will always be friends." She said, "I am very grateful for his support."

President Putin and his wife have been married for 30 years, since 1983 when they first met three years ago.

A mutual friend introduced them. Lyudmila, who was working as a flight attendant on domestic flights, had moved to Saint Petersburg (where Vladimir worked) with a friend three days prior.

“I was working for Department 1 (of the KGB) in Saint Petersburg at the time, and a friend invited me to the Arkady Raikin Theatre,” Putin recalled in a section of his biography posted on his personal website. “He said he had tickets and mentioned that some of his girlfriends were going with him. So we went to see the performance with the girls. The next day we went to the theatre again, and this time it was my turn to buy tickets. This continued on Tuesday. After that, I started dating one of the girls, and became friends with Lyudmila, my future wife.”

Three years after their first meeting, Vladimir proposed to Lyudmila. Putin admitted, “If I don’t get married within two or three years, I’ll never get married at all. Actually, I’m used to being single, but Lyudmila has changed that.”

The couple have two daughters together, Maria, 27, and Ekaterina, 26. According to unconfirmed sources, Putin also has a grandson, born in August 2012.

First Lady Lyudmila is a renowned linguist. She graduated from Saint Petersburg University in 1986. Throughout her career, she has devoted much of her energy to preserving and developing the Russian language.

Putin has never publicly disclosed details of his private life. He has only given vague answers to questions about his family.

Although the divorce rate in Russia is high, it is not common among the country's high-ranking officials and politicians. Vladimir Putin was the first Russian president to divorce while in office.

According to VNA - DT