The invasion of Ukraine by Russia stunned the world and triggered one of the worst humanitarian disasters since World War II. It also catapulted one of the most powerful personalities in world politics, Vladimir Putin, to the fore.
He has been in charge of Russian affairs for decades, and the West has always kept a close eye on him. However, some seasoned diplomats and policymakers were astonished by his choice to launch a war in Ukraine, especially in the twenty-first century.
Putin’s personality and career as a KGB officer have long piqued the world’s interest. We’ll take a peek at his way of life in this section.
According to Fortune, the Kremlin has stated that Putin gets a salary of $140,000 each year. According to the article, his officially reported assets include an 800-square-foot apartment, a trailer, and three automobiles.
However, he is frequently referred to as the world’s richest man. In 2017, the investment and asset management firm Hermitage Capital Management estimated Putin’s personal wealth to be $200 billion. Bill Browder, the company’s CEO, presented the assertion before the US Senate Judiciary Committee.
Browder was a big investor in Russia throughout the 1990s, thus his remarks concerning Putin and Russia are regarded seriously.
Due to his extravagant lifestyle, rumors about the Russian President’s obscene wealth continue to circulate. According to Fortune, Putin is spotted wearing high-end watches such as a $60,000 Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar and a $500,000 A Lange & Sohne Toubograph.
In a story based on a video leaked by Russian opposition organization Solidarity ten years ago, ABC News claimed that Putin possesses fine watches worth $700,000, which is almost six times his official income.
Putin is reportedly thought to possess a luxury 190,000 square-foot home perched atop a rock overlooking the Black Sea. The hotel is described as having frescoed ceilings, a marble swimming pool lined with sculptures of Greek gods, spas, an amphitheater, a state-of-the-art ice hockey rink, a Vegas-style casino, and a nightclub in various news media. If that wasn’t enough, the estate also includes a bar with hundreds of dollars worth of wine and liquor.
Russian opposition leaders have previously shared photos of the luxurious property, dubbed “Putin’s Country Cottage.” According to the photographs, the dining room furniture costs $500,000, the bar table costs $54,000, and the bathrooms are decked out with luxury $850 Italian toilet brushes and $1,250 toilet paper holders. According to the BBC, Russian businessman Arkady Rotenberg claimed ownership of the home in January this year, claiming that he, not Putin, is the owner.
Aside from the Black Sea residence, the 69-year-old Russian President is said to possess 19 additional homes, 700 automobiles, and 58 planes and helicopters, according to sources. One of these jets, dubbed “The Flying Kremlin,” cost $716 million and included a gold-plated toilet.
The Guardian published an article on Tuesday with a photo of a 140-meter-long, six-story superyacht in Italy that is also said to be owned by Putin. The Scheherazade is parked in a shipyard in Marina di Carrara, a village on Italy’s Tuscan coast, and is claimed to be worth $700 million. According to the Guardian, the ship has a spa, two swimming pools, two helipads, a wood-burning fireplace, and a pool table that tilts to decrease the effect of the waves.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked Italy to confiscate the boat in a speech to the Italian Parliament on Tuesday.
Despite enormous wealth, Putin not sanctioned by West
Western nations froze the assets of Russia’s elite, including those close to Putin, and put travel bans on them within days after the invasion of Ukraine. The Russian President, on the other hand, was spared.
The New York Times reports that this was done at the request of European countries such as Germany, which wanted communication routes with Russia’s senior leadership to stay open.
In January, the news agency Reuters reported Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as suggesting that personal penalties on Putin would be “politically disastrous” and tantamount to breaking diplomatic ties.
Information Credit: NDTV
