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Aerial photos are monumental. A palace rises above the Black Sea among ornamental gardens, sculpture galleries and vineyards, 17,700 square meters of neoclassicism; “A new Palace of Versailles,” says Kremlin critic Alexej Navalny, who personally belongs to President Vladimir Putin.
The opponent, now detained in Moscow, moderates the nearly two-hour film himself and estimates that the huge luxury residence near the Gelendzhik spa cost the equivalent of 1.2 billion euros.
The Kremlin speaks of “nonsense”
Navalny’s new video is a hit in Russia. Yesterday a total of more than 25 million people tuned in to YouTube at 4pm CET. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov described the film’s reporting as “sheer nonsense” and its authors as “fraud.”
In December, state authorities responded with similarly negative generalities to two Navalny videos about the participation of eight agents of the State Security Service (FSB) in the poison attack against the opposition. “Navalny has taken the political initiative from the Kremlin,” said Petersburg political scientist Dmitri Trawin of ON. The opponent of the regime was imprisoned immediately after his return from Germany. But he also remains on the offensive behind bars. He managed to post several videos and Instagram messages.
The authorities, however, act erratically. First Peskow went into hiding for a day, then a judge sentenced Navalny at a police station, under a portrait of Gulag founder Genrich Jagoda. Star state television host Dmitri Kisselev had previously compared Navalny’s return to that of Vladimir Lenin in 1917.
That too was unfortunate: shortly after, the revolutionary Lenin overthrew the ruling government. And on Tuesday it emerged that a police officer was being investigated in Samara. He is said to have disclosed flight travel data that raised suspicions against the FSB in case of poisoning. Many members of the opposition regard the process as an indirect admission of guilt on the part of the state power.
Political scientist Trawin says Navalny’s new video will continue to depress Putin’s popularity rating. The video also shows that the palace’s multi-level ice rink is underground. “You can see the bunker mentality of the owner,” says Navalny. “Obviously he likes to sit underground.” For the moment, in any case, Putin seems to prefer lowering his head.
Article of
Stefan scholl
