Cape Idokopas and Putin's residence in Gelendzhik

On the Internet and especially on social networks, high-resolution photographs are published showing Cape Idokopas, Putin's palace and the entire adjacent territory, probably taken off the plane. This is an extensive palace complex, built in Italian style. The cost of construction is estimated at one billion dollars. The palace with all adjacent territory occupies 87 hectares. The construction process was monitored by the Federal Security Service (FSO)

Putin's residence: location

This large Italian palace complex is located on the Black Sea coast near the village of Praskovevka in Gelendzhik, in the Krasnodar Territory. The residence on Cape Idokopas (Gelendzhik) is often referred to in the media as "Putin's Palace", "Putin's Residence", "Putin's Dacha", "Putin's Country Cottage."

The charge of corruption

Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for Vladimir Putin, deputy head of the presidential administration of the Russian Federation, claimed that the dacha was built for personal use by President Putin, and that his construction began when the president first took up his official duties. The project, whose construction was allegedly financed by improper use of public resources, was in fact carried out with the money of businessman Sergei Kolesnikov, who had connections with Putin even before he came to politics.

In December 2010, Kolesnikov wrote an open letter to President Dmitry Medvedev with a detailed description of the participation in the project of himself and others. The letter also called on Medvedev to investigate and take action against corruption in Russia. High-quality photographs depicting the Residence at Cape Idokopas (Gelendzhik) and its vast territory were subsequently published on the Wikileaks website in January 2011. The images show luxurious interior decorations. After the publication of photos, the site was temporarily blocked.

Speakers on behalf of Putin and the Russian government have consistently rejected the involvement of the president and his property in corruption. In February 2011 Novaya Gazeta reported that it had seen documents that confirmed Kolesnikov's non-involvement. At the same time, Vladimir Kozhin, Head of the Presidential Department for Property Management, was involved, who denied participation in any such cases. The spokesman declined to comment on the articles published in Novaya Gazeta. The presence of the Federal Security Service (FSO) in this case was claimed as yet another proof of state involvement. In April 2011, Vladimir Kozhin acknowledged the Kremlin's involvement in the project, saying that his office was dealing with Lirus (ROSINVEST, a branch of Lirus, which directly finances the construction of the palace) to create a contract for the construction of the palace.

The future of the residence

In March 2011, it was reported that the company "Idokopas", which owns about 67 hectares of land "recreational use" in the area of Praskovevka, including the "guest" complex area of 26,000 square meters, were sold for $ 350 million to Alexander Ponomarenko. He is a businessman and a billionaire who manages the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, which also has connections with Putin. Ponomarenko also said that he bought the second company "Azure Berry", which owns 60 hectares of agricultural land near Divnomorsk, a village 13 km from Praskovyorka. According to the newspaper Vedomosti, experts believe that the deal was made on a very doubtful amount. 350 million dollars - too expensive, they said, when valuing real estate in 20 million dollars. Ponomarenko bought the unfinished complex from Nikolai Shamalov, another member of the circle of Putin and businessman. Ponomarenko did not disclose his plans for the palace complex, but he also argued that in the future its value would be determined at $ 350 million. But most of all this project touched the national heritage - Cape Idocopas. The palace of Putin in this territory is a violation of all environmental requirements. Disputes about this do not subside in the press to this day.

Cape Idocopas and the project

This vast territory, covered with impenetrable greens. The rest of the virgin nature of the cape at one point was destroyed by the construction of the palace.

Cape Idokopas in Gelendzhik was significantly damaged by this project: hectares of forest were cut down, part of the mountain massif was blown up, and the valley of Malokanova Slit was rolled into asphalt. During construction, the seashore was blocked by fences. About the forest: junipers, several hundred years old, and Pitsunda relic pine trees were destroyed. The work was carried out with serious violations. Most importantly, the construction began without prior archaeological expertise. But it was necessary before starting the project. And now Cape Idokopas and his nature get along with a new structure, which is located on this territory.