Business Insider published a blueprint for what it said was a secret bunker built under a lavish palace of Russian President Vladimir Putin overlooking the Black Sea in anticipation of a nuclear danger.
The secret hideout was accidentally revealed when a Russian contractor published plans for the luxury palace on its website as part of a showcase of projects it completed in early 2010.
The plans, published by the now-defunct Russian company Metro Style, republished by Business Insider yesterday, show two converging tunnels stretching under Putin's lavish mansion, which was previously revealed through an investigative investigation by Russian dissident Alexei Navalny and caused a stir at the time in Russia.
Despite all the luxury of the Imperial Palace and the fortifications that make it a fortified fortress, those who built it neglected something important, as they failed to hide the scheme that shows the two tunnels under it, which assumes that any state security agency will fight to keep it secret.
The architectural plans published by the site reveal details of the fortified bunker built under the Putin palace, which consists of two separate tunnels, connected by an elevator that descends 50 meters underground. It also reveals that the two tunnels, built with thick layers of concrete, are equipped with amenities, enough fresh water, the necessary ventilation and spacious compartments to host VIPs for days or even weeks.
The illustrations published by the site show the exit of the tunnels just below the palace, which was built on an elevation overlooking the Black Sea, and is a fortified fortress surrounded by 17,<> hectares of forest that isolates it from the rest of the country, and flights are prohibited over it.
In January 2021, the Anti-Corruption Center in Russia, headed by Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny, published an investigative investigation about a lavish palace of President Vladimir Putin, revealing details of the palace and corruption in power circles, which caused a great stir in Russia.
The investigation, published in videos titled "Putin's Palace," included details about the lavish palace built on a vast area in the southern Black Sea resort of Gelingik.
The film showed documents indicating that the palace, built on an area 44 times the size of Monaco, cost $1.3 billion paid by state oil companies and businessmen close to the Russian president.