Putin ‘vanishes to his secret forest palace’ amid anti-war demos in Moscow

Vladimir Putin has escaped to his secret lakeside ‘palace’ amid brutal suppression of anti-mobilisation demonstrations in Moscow and St Petersburg.

Despite denials from the Kremlin, Putin appears to have vanished on holiday to his ‘most secret official dacha’ in northern Russia.

The residence, nestled in the forests of the Valdai Hills – about halfway between Moscow and St Petersburg – boasts a three-storey spa complex with a ‘personal beauty parlour’ nicknamed the ‘temple to his asceticism’.

His vacation comes as more than 700 people were detained by Russian authorities today at protests against the partial mobilisation ordered this week by the president, according to independent monitoring group OVD-Info.

There has been unrest in more than a dozen major cities, including Moscow, St Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Tomsk, Khabarovsk, Irkutsk, Ulan-Ude, Chita and Ivanovo, after 300,000 Russians were conscripted for perfunctory military training before being sent to Ukraine.

While the initial protests were quickly stamped out by Putin’s well-trained domestic security troops, new protests have broken out this afternoon in Moscow.

The sprawling lakeside estate, seen on drone footage, includes a three-storey spa complex (pictured) with a ‘personal beauty parlour’ nicknamed the ‘temple to his asceticism’

His vacation comes as more than 700 people were detained by Russian authorities today at protests against the partial mobilisation ordered this week by the president, according to independent monitoring group OVD-Info

Images show menacing, helmeted riot police manhandling brave men and women who ventured out into the rain to protest Putin’s mobilisation.

Protesters have been accused of illegal rallies and in some cases discrediting Putin’s armed forces, which could lead to up to 15 years in jail.

Queues at the nation’s borders have appeared as young men attempt to flee Russia to avoid the draft, with European Council president Charles Michel advising EU members yesterday to offer asylum to conscientious objectors leaving Russia to avoid the draft.

Meanwhile, Putin has seemingly cut himself off from the chaos triggered by his mobilisation announcement.

Journalist Farida Rustamova posted that a trusted source said Putin has, since last Wednesday evening, been resting ‘body and soul’ in his residence on Lake Valdai in the Novgorod Region.

She claimed pre-recorded videos showing him meeting officials have been released to make it appear that he is busy at work, when in reality he is ‘resting’ at his four-storey mansion.

Images show menacing, helmeted riot police manhandling brave men and women who ventured out into the rain to protest Putin’s mobilisation

Journalist Farida Rustamova claims pre-recorded videos have been released to make it seem that Putin is busy at work, when in reality he is resting at his four-storey mansion

Earlier this week the president announced a partial mobilisation of Russia, a significant escalation in the war against Ukraine

The sprawling lakeside estate, seen on drone footage, includes a stable, golf course, mini-golf course, VIP restaurant with a cinema, bowling, billiard room and even a mini-casino.

The existence of the secret residence was revealed by the anti-corruption team working with his jailed nemesis Alexei Navalny last year.

Mr Navalny’s team also claimed the facility has its own dentist’s surgery and a fully-equipped cosmetologist’s office.

The three-storey spa complex includes a cyro chamber for extreme cold therapy and a mud bath in a 7,000 square metre relaxation facility.

There is also a specialist float pool – a large bath filled with very salty water that keeps you buoyed on the surface when you lie in it- a 25-metre pool surrounded by hot tubs and saunas, and a Thai massage podium.

It is also allegedly equipped with Putin’s special massage chair illuminated by a special infrared lamp.

The sprawling lakeside estate, seen on drone footage, includes a stable, golf course, mini-golf course, VIP restaurant with a cinema, bowling, billiard room and even a mini-casino

The existence of the mansion, located by Lake Valdai in the Novgorod Region, was exposed last year by the anti-corruption team working with his jailed nemesis Alexei Navalny last year

The home is close to important Orthodox churches which 69-year-old Putin is known to have visited at other times of crisis during his more than two decades in power.

His conscription order earlier this week has not only led to protests across the country but has also seen the emergence of drunken insubordination and brawling by those being drafted into the Ukrainian meatgrinder. 

Videos show reluctant conscripts at recruitment offices and staging points hitting the bottle and drinking themselves senseless as military commanders try to coral them into order before boarding buses and planes.

Putin’s desperation for fresh cannon fodder is so great that he is even trying to call up Russians who have already died, including a man who had passed away aged 40 while on a ventilator at a hospital in his Siberian hometown of Ulan-Ude in December 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, flights out of Russia have sold out and border crossings into nearby Armenia, Georgia and Kazakhstan are gridlocked by up to 30 hours as enterprising Russians turn to scooters to beat the queues out of Putin’s totalitarian nightmare.

Walking to the border point is not allowed, but scooters have been so far permitted, and local entrepreneurs are selling them to Russians seeking to flee Putin’s call-up.