Ukraine has launched a series of bold long-range assaults aimed at dismantling the air defenses surrounding Vladimir Putin’s opulent £1 billion palace, effectively leaving this extravagant sanctuary ‘unprotected’.
For months, Kyiv has relentlessly targeted the energy and oil sectors that are crucial to Russia’s economy, disrupting daily operations and sowing economic turmoil. Now, Ukraine’s military tactics have shifted, setting their sights on the expansive holiday estate of the Russian leader.
On August 7, Ukrainian forces successfully obliterated a Volna Kupol Garant electronic warfare system positioned near the palatial retreat, nestled by the resort town of Gelendzhik on the picturesque Black Sea coast. Just two days following this strike, an S-400 anti-aircraft missile system nearby was also hit.
The sophisticated Volna Kupol Garant system plays a vital role in jamming satellite communications around Putin’s estate, including the Starlink internet service operated by Elon Musk, which is frequently used by Ukrainian troops to maintain connectivity.
Despite its effectiveness against drone attacks, this electronic warfare system presents a significant vulnerability. According to military expert Yan Matveyev, its sheer size—a ‘small military base’—renders it easily detectable from the skies, making it a prime target.
The destruction of the electronic warfare system opened the way for Ukrainian drones to reach the S-400, designed to repel aircraft, drones and cruise missiles.
The S-400 had also been repurposed to launch six missiles at Ukraine on the night of August 9.
‘Satellite imagery shows the destruction of at least one launcher… Now Putin’s “palace” is left unprotected,’ said Matveyev.
Aerial view of Vladimir Putin’s alleged palace in Gelendzhik, south of Russia
A view shows a S-400 Triumph surface-to-air missile system after its deployment at a military base outside the town of Gvardeysk near Kaliningrad, Russia March 11, 2019
The moment key air defences and electronic warfare equipment were destroyed by Ukrainian drones in Gelendzhik, purportedly used to protect Putin’s nearby palace
The S-400 anti-aircraft missile system – located around 12 miles from the Russian president’s Italianate palace complex – was left ‘ablaze and sputtering for three hours’, according to Major Robert Brovdi, the commander of Ukraine’s unmanned systems forces.
Volodymyr Zelensky’s forces are ‘systematically destroying’ the elaborate protection for the residence, reported The Moscow Times.
The palace has been likened to the lair of a James Bond villain with a 16-storey underground complex and bunker, built inside the cliff to withstand nuclear attack.
Putin’s 17,700-square-metre complex gained widespread notoriety following an investigation by Alexei Navalny, the late opposition activist and founder of the Anti-Corruption Foundation.
In a video posted in January 2021, which gained over a hundred million views in a month, the Kremlin critic alleged that the closely guarded complex was built for the Russian dictator.
Navalny claimed the property cost £1billion and was paid for ‘with the largest bribe in history’, funded by a circle of businessmen close to Putin.
The nearly two-hour video showed a lavish compound decked out with ostentatious features, including an ornate tea house, an amphitheater, a helipad, a church, and several restaurants.
The vast property also features a casino, an ice rink and a vineyard.
Security officials maintain a strict no-fly zone above the complex.
Fearing Ukraine’s long-range drone strikes, the Russian president is believed to visit the Black Sea refuge only rarely.
He favours staying in his highly fortified luxury property on Lake Valdai, 185 miles east of Moscow.
That residence is shielded by a total of 27 towers, costing £16million each, mounted with Pantsir anti-aircraft systems, according to an investigation by Radio Svoboda citing satellite imagery.
The footage of the Gelendzhik mansion was released after Navalny, an anticorruption campaigner, flew back to Russia from Germany and went straight into custody.
Putin denied he owned the palace, with his longtime associate, businessman Arkady Rotenberg, saying he was the proprietor of the infamous property.
In 2024, Navalny died in a remote Arctic prison. His widow accused Putin of orchestrating her husband’s death, saying it was caused by poisoning.
The Kremlin denies involvement in his death, which Russian officials claimed was caused by natural causes.
‘The Ukrainian military has launched a deliberate hunt for Russian air defences in occupied Crimea and southern Russia,’ said Matveev.
‘For example, an S-400 system near Gelendzhik was hit after they had been unable to reach it for a long time.’
On August 7, a Volna Kupol Garant electronic warfare system was destroyed near the luxurious palace, located near Gelendzhik, a resort town on the Black Sea
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A view shows a new S-400 Triumph surface-to-air missile system after its deployment at a military base outside the town of Gvardeysk near Kaliningrad, Russia March 11, 2019
Russia on fire: A mystery blaze ignited a Rosneft oil refinery in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, more than 4,000 miles east of Ukraine
A fire in Novosibirsk cause panic after Vladimir Putin’s arrival, but it turned out to be a regular house blaze
It comes as Russia was on fire today, as Ukrainian drones hit key industrial targets and mystery infernos deepened Putin’s agony.
The Russian leader arrived in unofficial Siberian capital Novosibirsk as Ukraine staged its latest strikes, and investigators probed whether sabotage was behind unexplained fires.
Putin’s anxiety over the war was shown by a decision to block the only pro-peace party, Yabloko, from standing in next month’s parliamentary elections amid fears its support would skyrocket.
In Voronezh region, a vast Russian Amazon online marketplace complex, Wildberries, was destroyed by a raging fire after a drone attack.
The warehouse facility – measuring 1.68 million square feet and used to back Putin’s war – is 295 miles south of Moscow.
Separately, Ukrainian drones reached almost 1,000 miles into southern Russia to ignite a key Orsknefteorgsintez oil refinery in Orsk, one of the country’s largest, close to the Kazakhstan border.
In the same city, the long-range drones reportedly targeted a strategic mechanical plant.
The facility was the sole Russian producer of artillery cartridge cases of 57mm calibre and above, and manufacturer of components for Grad, Uragan, Smerch and Buratino multiple-launch rocket systems.
The site is one of Russia’s most importance defence plants.
In another blow, a mystery blaze ignited a Rosneft oil refinery in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Khabarovsk region, more than 4,000 miles east of Ukraine.
The cause was not clear but it came as Ukraine is crippling Putin’s oil economy, a key funder of his war machine.
And a key power plant ignited in the Siberian industrial city Angarsk, in another unexplained fire.
A blaze in Novosibirsk caused momentary panic after Putin’s arrival, but it turned out to be non-suspicious, according to law enforcement.
On Monday, Ukraine caused more damage, igniting two major petrochemical plants in Nizhnekamsk, 800 miles from Ukraine, and Tobolsk, a distance of 1,400 miles.
Meanwhile, Russia killed six people and left 19 injured in a ballistic missile and air bomb attack on Ukrainian-controlled Zaporizhzhia region.
Four apartment buildings, industrial facilities, and infrastructure were hit in the attack.
Another attack on civilians came in Dnipropetrovsk region, where three were killed and five wounded.