The Russian president blames his gymnast lover Alina Kabaeva and her friends for leaking details of their lavish lifestyle, a Telegram channel General SVR claims.
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Why are Putin and Kabaeva feuding?
While most Russians survive on an average salary between $400 and $650 / £332 and £540 per month, Vladimir Putin and his alleged girlfriend Alina Kabaeva reportedly ‘drown in luxury’ and have their guests sit on gilded chairs.
As this has now been exposed to the world, the Russian president who likes to keep things private is 'furious' and blames Kabaeva and her ‘gossiping friends’ for the leaks.
According to a Telegram channel General SVR, publishedpictures of the gold £100 million mansion and its luxurious interiors, said to have been inspired by Putin’s love for his hometown of St Petersburg and its eighteenth-century Hermitage Museum, sparked a row between him and Kabaeva. The channel claims to be fed information by a Kremlin insider but its sources are yet to be confirmed.
It said:
Putin said that he had 100 per cent information that the leak came from Kabaeva’s circle of friends. They say that no one has ever seen the president so furious.
According to the channel, the fuming dictator said that his gymnast lover's friends talk ‘on every corner about everything they know and don't know’.
The Russian leader is believed to have bought the grand 13,000 sq ft property on Lake Valdai for the Olympic champion using a slush fund in Cyprus, Russian investigative site The Project claimed. And it’s where she is alleged to live with their children.
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Gilded chairs and golden leaves
Kabaeva’s property is said to be just half a mile from Valdai, Putin’s heavily-guarded and private residence.
Reports about the existence of the villa first emerged in 2021 from the team of Alexei Navalny, the jailed Russian opposition leader, who said that budget funds were used to lease the property.
Unnamed officials claimed they had spotted children on the premises and satellite images were taken between 2016 and 2020 showing a playground in the woods, which is believed to have been built for the family.
Pictures of the mansion were leaked to The Project by a construction executive who worked around the house until 2005.
Gilded chairs can be seen arranged around a glass table and a spherical chandelier, with golden leaves hanging from the ceiling, in another photo.
According to the contractor, guests were encouraged to reach out and take one of the golden leaves.
A construction company owned by Yuri Kovalchuk, the businessman known as ‘Putin’s banker', is said to have carried out the work on the mansion which was completed in 2020.
In another picture, a massive chandelier seemingly decorated with rubies can be seen.
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Sources used:
- The Sun: 'Raging Putin blames gossiping friends of gymnast lover for leaking details of their lavish lifestyle, claims ‘insider’'
- Statista: 'Population share in Russia 2013-2021, by monthly per capita income'