Oksana Voevodina, Russian ex-wife of Malaysian Sultan Muhammad V, posts Instagram photo of baby she says is their son

HONG KONG — The Russian beauty queen ex-wife of Kelantan’s royal ruler has posted a photo on Instagram of a baby boy she says is their son.

It was the latest twist in the divorce saga of 27-year-old Oksana Voevodina and Sultan Muhammad V, who through his lawyer had previously said it was unclear whether he was the biological father of Ismail Leon, the baby who was born on May 21.

The former Miss Moscow posted the photo of the infant on Saturday to a recently created Instagram account using the name Rihana Oksana Petra.

In the photo, the boy wears a white outfit with a pale blue bow tie and waistcoat.

“Hello, my name is Ismail Leon. I’m 5 months old and my mom loves me very much,” the post read.

Ms Voevodina told MailOnline: “He looks every bit like his father and he has this Asian-looking face”.

“He’s same handsome as his father. And he’s very talkative and I love him very, very much,” she said.

She has said she was willing to let her son take a DNA test to prove paternity.

Ms Voevodina used the same Instagram account to announce the birth of their first child on June 4, just weeks before the divorce with Sultan Muhammad was finalised.

That post featured a black and white picture of the baby’s feet and the message said she was “greatful (sic) to Allah and my husband for our son”.

“Now there are three of us. Thank you for choosing our family, Tengku Ismail Leon Petra Bin Tengku Muhammad V Faris Petra,” the post read.

Ms Voevodina and Sultan Muhammad reportedly married in June 2018 but divorced in June this year amid widespread speculation about why the relationship ended.

Discussion about the private affairs of Malaysia’s constitutional monarchs, who serve as guardians of the Islamic faith and centuries-old Malay culture, is usually muted.

But the recent twists and turns in the couple’s marriage has become a hot topic not only in Malaysia but also among royal watchers around the world.

Mr Koh Tien Hua, a Singapore-based family lawyer for 50-year-old Muhammad, said the divorce was done through the mechanism under Muslim law known as “triple talaq” – where talaq (‘divorce‘ in Arabic) is said to a wife three times.

Ms Voevodina has said that circulation online of the July 1 divorce certificate was “an act of provocation”.

Sultan Muhammad abdicated as Malaysia’s king in January, months after his surprise wedding to Ms Voevodina in Moscow.

He was replaced by Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, the hereditary ruler of the central Malaysian state of Pahang.

It was the first time that a king had abdicated in Malaysia.

Under Malaysia’s unique rotational system of constitutional monarchy, the hereditary rulers of each of the country’s nine states are given a chance to be agong for five years.

These nine royals form the Conference of Rulers, along with four state governors who attend but cannot vote. SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST