Putin's Palace. History of World's Largest Bribe

Putin's palace. History of world's largest bribe[1] is a 2021 Russian documentary film by the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) detailing corruption over the building of "Putin's Palace". Its original Russian title is Дворец для Путина. История самой большой взятки, meaning "A Palace for Putin: The Story of the Biggest Bribe".[2][3] The film estimates that the complex, located near the town of Gelendzhik in Krasnodar Krai, which it says was built for Vladimir Putin, cost over ₽100 billion (approximately $1.35 billion).[4]

Putin's Palace. History of world's largest bribe
The courtyard of the Residence at Cape Idokopas, the main subject of the film
Original titleДворец для Путина. История самой большой взятки
Produced byAnti-Corruption Foundation
Written byAlexei Navalny
Narrated byAlexei Navalny
Distributed byAnti-Corruption Foundation
Release date
  • 19 January 2021 (2021-01-19) (YouTube)
  • 25 January 2021 (2021-01-25) (TVP Info)
Running time
1 hour, 53 minutes
CountryRussia
LanguageYouTube: Russian (with official English subtitles)
TVP Info: Polish
External video
"Дворец для Путина. История самой большой взятки" (Putin's palace. History of world's largest bribe) with English subtitles

Putin denied ownership of the palace and the oligarch Arkady Rotenberg claimed ownership.[5][6]

Synopsis

The film opens with a call for people to come out and participate in the 2021 Russian protests demanding the release of Alexei Navalny, the film's narrator and scriptwriter, who was detained after arriving in Russia following treatment and rehabilitation in Germany in connection with his poisoning in 2020. Alexei Navalny then goes on to tell the story of the making of the film, saying that the film is an in-depth look into the psychological portrait of Vladimir Putin.

The film mainly focuses on the building of the Residence at Cape Idokopas, a dacha located near the town of Gelendzhik in Krasnodar Krai, which Navalny calls "the largest private house in Russia", citing documents regarding its construction,[7] some of which are then presented to the audience for viewing. According to The Straits Times, these documents included itemised lists of purchased furniture and samples of the building's floor patterns, which were handed over to the Anti-Corruption Foundation by a subcontractor involved with its construction.[8] Allegedly, all vehicles entering the compound are subject to inspections at several checkpoints, and workers are strictly forbidden from carrying mobile phones with a camera.[9] Besides the complex itself, the restricted area also includes an underground ice palace and two helipads, an arboretum and greenhouse measuring 2,500 square metres, a church, an amphitheatre, a teahouse and an 80-metre bridge leading to the compound, which crosses a ravine.[9] Due to its location on a steep bank, a special tunnel was dug to provide access to the nearby beach, and contains a tasting room overlooking the Black Sea.[9] The area of the palace complex is 68 hectares, with 7000 hectares of land surrounding the palace being designated as a closed territory under the jurisdiction of the Federal Security Service. According to the film, all fishing activities within a radius of two kilometres from the Residence at Cape Idokopas is banned and the airspace over the palace complex is closed to all aircraft.[9] The film goes on to focus on the businesses located within the complex, a luxury winery, vineyards and an oyster farm, showing inconsistencies between their estimated values and reported productions and revenues. It establishes how the (changing) ownerships conceal an interconnected network of managers as well as “donors” that supply money. The network includes former associates (e.g. Vladimir Kolbin, son of a childhood friend of Putin) or relatives of Putin (e.g. Mikhail Shelomov of JSC Accept), but also state-owned companies such as Transneft through shady “leasing” services. Huge sums are funneled into the compound in what Navalny calls the “biggest bribe” and Putin's “slush fund”.

The film concludes with an appeal to the audience to not remain passive about the robbing of the country by its own officials that refuse to hold fair elections.

Reception

In under a day, the film, which was released on Navalny's YouTube channel, had garnered over 20 million views.[10] According to MBK Media, the film was the most watched video on YouTube that day.[11] By the next day, the film was in YouTube's top 10 trending videos in 23 countries, with it being number one in Russia, Belarus, Cyprus, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, and Ukraine.[12] In under two days, the film garnered over 40 million views.[3][13] In three days, it garnered over 60 million views.[14] On 28 January, the film garnered over 100 million views.[15]

On the day the documentary film was published, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Putin did not have any palaces.[16] The next day, he called the film a "pseudo-investigation" and a "scam" to reporters, saying that citizens should "think before transferring money to such crooks".[10][17]

President Putin later stated, in a video conference with students on Student's Day, that the palace didn't belong to him or his close relatives. He also claimed that the materials were used to "brainwash" citizens.[18][19][20]

On 30 January, Arkady Rotenberg, who has close links to Putin, publicly claimed ownership of the palace. He said: "I have managed to strike a deal with creditors a few years ago, and I became a beneficiary of this site a few years ago." He also said that the property would be completed "in a couple of years" and that it was expected to become an apartment hotel. However, he gave no further financial details of how it was funded and purchased.[5][6]

See also

References
  2. Smolentseva, Natalia; Barysheva, Elena (21 January 2021). "Russian activist says he toured Putin's rumored palace". Deutsche Welle.
  3. "Расследование команды Навального «Дворец для Путина» собрало уже почти 40 млн просмотров на YouTube". Novaya Gazeta. 21 January 2021.
  4. "Putin's palace: Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation investigates the Russian president's billion-dollar residence on the Black Sea". Meduza. 19 January 2021.
  5. "Putin's former judo partner says he owns palace linked to Russian leader". www.theguardian.com. The Guardian. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  6. "Russian billionaire Arkady Rotenberg says 'Putin Palace' is his". BBC News. 30 January 2021.
  7. "Palace for Putin". Anti-Corruption Foundation. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  8. Aw Cheng Wei (24 January 2021). "Kremlin critic alleges Putin is owner of opulent Black Sea palace". The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  9. "Навальный опубликовал расследование о "дворце Путина". Главное". BBC News Russian Service (in Russian). Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  10. "«Подумайте перед тем, как переводить деньги таким жуликам». Песков — о расследовании ФБК про «дворец Путина»". Meduza.io. 20 January 2021.
  11. "Расследование о дворце Путина стало самым просматриваемым роликом на Youtube за 19 января". MBK Media. 20 January 2021.
  12. "Фильм ФБК о «дворце Путина» попал в первую десятку в трендах YouTube в 23 странах". tvrain.ru. 20 January 2021.
  13. "40 миллионов достигло число просмотров фильма "Дворец для Путина". silver.ru. 21 January 2021.
  14. "У видео Навального о «дворце Путина» уже более 60 миллионов просмотров". charter97.org. 22 January 2021.
  15. "Фильм «Дворец для Путина» на ютьюбе посмотрели 100 миллионов раз". meduza.io (in Russian). 28 January 2021.
  16. "Есть у Путина дворец или нет? Отвечает Дмитрий Песков". Meduza.io. 19 January 2021.
  17. "Песков назвал «псевдорасследованием» материал ФБК о «дворце Путина»". rbc.ru. 20 January 2021.
  18. "Billion-Dollar Palace in Navalny Investigation 'Doesn't Belong to Me,' Putin Says". The Moscow Times. 25 January 2021.
  19. "«Все скомпоновали и решили этими материалами промыть мозги граждан» Путин на встрече со студентами семь минут отвечал на вопрос о дворце в Геленджике. Полная расшифровка". Meduza.io. 25 January 2021.
  20. "'They're brainwashing our citizens' Putin comments on his alleged ownership of billion-dollar residence — Meduza". Meduza.io. 25 January 2021. Archived from the original on 25 January 2021.
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