Czech Sphinx Business dealings of tycoon close to takeover of Royal Mail

On a cool June day in 2016, as Britain reeled from the Brexit vote, a private jet soared into the skies from RAF Northolt, charting a course for Moscow.

- Rob Davies

Aboard the 37-seater Embraer ERJ was the billionaire Daniel Křetínský, nicknamed the "Czech Sphinx" because of his low public profile and inscrutable approach to commercial negotiations.

Eight years later, Křetínský is on the verge of clinching a deal that would represent a landmark triumph even for him: the £3.6bn takeover of Royal Mail's parent company, International Distribution Services (IDS).

The only thing that could stop him acquiring Britain's 508-year-old postal service would be a sensational intervention from the UK government, which has been reviewing whether the deal poses a risk to national security interests.

Křetínský has publicly condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine and, according to reports, the government is minded to approve the Royal Mail takeover.

If that happens, ministers can expect more scrutiny of their decision.

Today, the Guardian can reveal further details of Křetínský's dealings in Russia, as well as other business wrangles that could set a troubling precedent for Royal Mail.

After landing at Moscow's Vnukovo airport on the evening of 29 June 2016, Křetínský and a small group of colleagues were whisked for talks with Alexey Miller, a close ally of Vladimir Putin and the head of Russia's state-owned gas company, Gazprom.

Leaked documents, obtained by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project and reviewed by the Guardian, suggest that the summit was approved at the highest level of Russian politics.

Details of Křetínský's travel arrangements were revealed by a leak of emails from the office of Alexander Babakov, a senior member of Russia's parliament, the Duma, and a major investor in Crimea.

Russia had invaded and annexed the territory two years earlier, in an act of aggression that was only the beginning of Putin's territorial ambitions in Ukraine.