Seven new air defence towers installed around Putin's Valdai residence
Seven new towers equipped with Pantsir air defence systems were built around Russian leader Vladimir Putin's residence in Valdai during March, bringing their total number there to 27.
Source: Radio Liberty's Russian Service
Details: Based on an analysis of satellite images from Planet.com, the outlet reported that construction of the seven towers began simultaneously on 17 March, the same day Russia's Ministry of Defence reported shooting down four Ukrainian UAVs over Leningrad Oblast.
Some of the new towers have already been equipped with surface-to-air missile systems.
The outlet noted that air defence around the residence is arranged in two rings with different radii, similar to the defence system surrounding Moscow.
Quote: "At the Valdai residence, as Radio Liberty journalists previously established, Alina Kabaeva spends a great deal of time with Putin's sons, and for the Russian leader himself one of the exact replicas of his Kremlin office was built there." [Alina Kabaeva is the mother of Putin's two sons – ed.]
Background: Earlier, the outlet reported that more than 20 towers equipped with heavy machine guns, as well as several platforms armed with Pantsir air defence systems, had been constructed on the territory and around the perimeter of the Alabuga special economic zone in Tatarstan, where Russia produces Geran UAVs – modified versions of Iranian Shahed drones.
Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!