In the Valdai district of the Novgorod region, in the immediate vicinity of the residence of Russian President Vladimir Putin, unusual protective structures have appeared. On the highway, approximately nine kilometers from the site, special nets were installed over truck parking areas.
Technologies from the front
Photographs of the new structures were published by journalist Oleg Kashin in his Telegram channel. The photos were sent by readers of the publication, and their location was confirmed by the analytical agency "Agentstvo". Experts note that similar mesh structures are widely used in the combat zone. Their main function is to protect equipment and personnel from small unmanned aerial vehicles and munitions dropped by drones.
Control instead of protection?
However, the purpose of these structures may not be so obvious. The founder of the investigative project Conflict Intelligence Team, Ruslan Leviev, put forward a version that the nets are intended not so much to protect trucks as to control them.
In the expert's opinion, the tightening of security measures was a reaction to the Ukrainian operation "Spiderweb". During this operation, drones were hidden inside cargo vehicles and launched in the immediate vicinity of targets, which proved the vulnerability of logistics chains.
Growing paranoia in the Kremlin
The appearance of such structures on the highway indicates that concerns about the safety of the Russian leadership have only intensified in recent times. This is confirmed by Western media reports. The Financial Times reported that after the liquidation of the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Russian special services conducted a thorough check of the video surveillance systems guarding the president and his entourage.
According to journalists, Israeli intelligence used road camera footage and modern data analysis tools to accurately determine the target's location when planning the operation against Khamenei. After this, serious alarm arose in the Kremlin: the technologies that allowed the elimination of the Iranian leader could be used to track Russian officials as well.