Vladimir Putin claims that Ukraine 'attacked Crimea bridge'
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President Putin may be planning an escape from Russia, should the country fall to Ukraine, according to various sources.
It comes as over the past few days, Putin’s annual press conference has been cancelled, and his yearly “conversation with the people” — a Q&A session that can last for more than four hours.
Both events, which are broadcast live by state television, are vital elements of the Kremlin’s portrayal of Putin as an all-powerful, father of the nation figure.
“This all looks somewhat suspicious,” Yekaterina Schulmann, a Russian political scientist, said. “[These events] are all necessary for a sense of stability. People are already in a desperate state of mind.”
The failures of the Russian army in Ukraine has meant that the Kremlin has begun preparing safe havens for Putin in case Russia suffers a humiliating defeat and he is forced to flee the country, his former speechwriter has said.
Abbas Gallyamov, who is now a political analyst, cited a Kremlin source who said that Putin would escape to Argentina or Venezuela, if there was a serious threat that he could be toppled. The plan is believed to be codenamed “Noah’s Ark”.
“[Putin’s] entourage has not ruled out that he will lose the war, be stripped of power, and have to urgently evacuate somewhere,” Gallyamov wrote on Telegram.
Igor Sechin, the head of Rosneft, a state oil company, is said to be overseeing the arrangements for a possible escape to Venezuela.
He is one of Putin’s closest allies and is thought to have a close relationship with Nicolas Maduro, the Venezuelan leader. Little is known of the alleged plan to evacuate Putin to Argentina, if his regime collapses.
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