© picture alliance / Picvario Media | Roman Naumov
According to a report by a European intelligence agency that U.S. news channel CNN was able to look into, the Kremlin has greatly increased security for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The increased security for the Russian president comes after a series of assassination attempts on top Russian military officers. The Kremlin is concerned about attempts to oust Putin from power.
Employees in Putin's immediate vicinity, such as cooks, bodyguards and photographers, are banned from using public transportation. Screening of who enters the Kremlin has been tightened and his closest associates are only allowed to use phones that do not have Internet access.
It is also notable that Putin makes far fewer trips and that he and his family and loved ones travel much less to his usual residences around the Russian capital as well as his summer residence between St. Petersburg and Moscow.
The Russian elite is increasingly critical of Putin and the war with Ukraine that has now lasted more than four years. The economic consequences of that war, such as mobile phone outages around major cities, affect not only the general population, but the elite as well.
With Putin, according to the European intelligence report, there are also growing fears of a coup, such as that of Sergei Shoygoe, who was his defense minister for 12 years, but who was promoted away to secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation in May 2024. Shoygoe can still count on much support from the head of military.
Picture: © picture alliance / Picvario Media | Roman Naumov