MOSCOW, April 25. /TASS/. Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner private military company, has said that he was not in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.

He emphasized that he has nothing to do with the Kremlin. "Moreover, I will tell you that the stories about my acquaintance with President Putin are very, very exaggerated. Certainly, I have communicated with him, but the rumors of our acquaintance are only that - rumors," he said in an interview with the defenceWeb news portal.

According to the Wagner founder, Putin most likely visited Prigozhin’s restaurants in St. Petersburg when Putin was the deputy mayor there. At the time, "I had no interest in talking to him," Prigozhin said, noting he first met Putin only when he was president.

"I do not have the opportunity to visit him (Putin - TASS) whenever I want to, or call him," he said.

Prigozhin is under sanctions by the US, the EU, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Japan as part of the Russian leader’s close circle.

A number of media outlets repeatedly published information on Yevgeny Prigozhin being "Putin’s cook."