A report reveals that the expense of Vladimir Putin’s personal security has soared this year, according to official figures, as the Kremlin increases steps to protect the Russian leader in the wake of his massive invasion of Ukraine.
According to state media, the Russian government spent nearly $190 million on Putin’s and his staff’s security from January to May this year, an increase of 15% from the same period last year and nearly 80% of the annual budget allocation. According to the article, such a sum exceeds what the Russian government spends on the military and border patrol combined.
As the full-scale invasion he initiated in February 2022 continues, so does the expenditure on Putin’s protection as drone strikes within Russian territory escalate in severity.
Two drones collided with the Moscow Kremlin on May 3. Russia had accused Ukraine of being responsible for a massive drone strike on Moscow. It claimed that 8 drones had caused minor damage. Ukraine has strongly refuted accusations that it was behind the strikes.
According to an independent Russian news site established soon after the war began, Putin is likewise not taking any risks with a prospective arrest. Two and a half months after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for him, it was reported that the leader was staying in Russia. The ICC wanted him for war crimes, including the alleged unlawful deportation of minors from Ukraine to Russia, during his full-scale invasion.
A recent report claims that Vladimir Putin prefers to travel by armored rail rather than his own jet since the President is “scared” that it may be blasted out of the sky.
According to an anti-Kremlin investigative team Dossier Center reporter, Putin has ceased flying his presidential aircraft for the most part since the commencement of the conflict in Ukraine.
Instead, he has reportedly been riding an armored train fitted with a secret means of communication.
