Scared Of Assassination, Putin Uses Secret Trains And Decoy Planes, Russian Defector Reveals In Report

Russian President Vladimir Putin's safety net creates a virtual state within a state. It includes firefighters, food testers, and engineers who travel with the Russian President on his trips abroad.

According to a defected Russian officer, Vladimir Putin does not use a mobile phone or the internet. ( Image Source :Getty )

Gleb Karakulov, a former captain in Russia's Federal Protection Service (FSO), has provided insight into the extreme measures taken to protect Russian President Vladimir Putin. British daily The Guardian wrote that Karakulov revealed details about a secret train network, Putin's strict personal quarantine regimen, and identical offices in different cities to hide his whereabouts.
The revelations were made in an interview with the Dossier Centre, a political information outfit founded by exiled Russian billionaire Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Karakulov confirmed the existence of a secret train network and said that the lack of ability to track a train in a secret network made it a viable choice for transport. "It’s done for stealth," he said. Karakulov, who helped transmit some of Putin's most secret messages, called Putin a "war criminal" and said the Russian president is "pathologically afraid for his life."

According to Karakulov, Putin's safety net creates a virtual state within a state. It includes firefighters, food testers, and engineers who travel with the Russian President on his trips abroad. He said they call Putin "the Boss" and worship him in every way, providing a rare first-hand insight into the levels of paranoia and sheltered lifestyle of the Russian president. 

Karakulov also disclosed Putin's reliance on his security services' reports. "Putin does not use a mobile phone or the internet," he said. Karakulov further mentioned that Putin's behavior and lifestyle had significantly changed since the outbreak of the Covid pandemic in 2020. Putin had then stopped almost all travel and public appearances.

According to Karakulov, the Russian President has identical offices in St Petersburg, Sochi, and Novo-Ogaryovo. Putin's secret services use decoy motorcades and planes to mask his movements from foreign intelligence and prevent any assassination attempt. Karakulov confirmed that Putin surrounds himself with an impenetrable barrier of quarantines and an information vacuum. However, Putin remains quarantined and all his staffers undergo a two-week quarantine. This considerably limits the number of people who have personal contact with him.

Karakulov also described setting up secret communications for Putin on planes, helicopters, lavish yachts, and even in a bomb shelter at the Russian embassy in Kazakhstan during an October 2022 visit. He later escaped to Turkey and then to an undisclosed country in the West. He said that he was opposed to the Ukraine invasion, but had to wait to persuade his wife, before fleeing together as a family. According to him, he severed contact with his parents, who were in favour of the war.

The interview did not provide information on what messages Karakulov had encrypted for Putin or more information on Putin's preparations for the war or strategy. According to the Dossier Centre, Karakulov's present location is unknown. The Guardian also managed to confirm that Karakulov is a wanted man in Russia. While the strict quarantine regime has fueled rumors that Putin may be seriously ill and worried about complications from coronavirus, Karakulov said he had seen no indications that Putin was in poor health.

Karakulov, at present, is the highest-ranking intelligence officer to defect from Russian forces since the beginning of the Russian invasion. He called on fellow officers to come forward with information being hidden from the Russian public, saying, "Our president has lost touch with the world." He said Putin only values his own life and those of his friends and family.