Some of Vladimir Putin's closest assistants have been identified by a Ukrainian open-source intelligence group whose research comes amid claims by a former Kyiv intelligence chief about the Russian president's fears for his security. OSINT-Bees previously revealed the details of Russian military chiefs, politicians and propagandists and in their latest research named four key people who are either at Putin's side or in the background. Sometimes they even sleep in the next room,” OSINT-Bees told Newsweek.
It comes as former head of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service, Lieutenant General Valerii Kondratiuk, told Ukrainian media that security measures around Putin "have been tightened to the maximum." Newsweek has contacted the Kremlin for comment. OSINT-Bees calls Putin's assistants "adjutants" and likens them to those who assisted the Russian czars in imperial times. All are from Moscow or the Moscow region and are part of the Presidential Security Service (SBP) of the Federal Protective Service (FSO) and hold the rank of lieutenant colonel or lower.
They like to travel to exotic places and have high-end cars, according to OSINT-Bees. They often appear in images on the Kremlin website with Putin during his domestic and international trips, but little is known about their identities. "These people are all going to be well-groomed, and because they're drawn from the Presidential Security Service, they're tall, big and athletic," Mark Galeotti, author of We Need to Talk About Putin, How the West Gets Him Wrong, told Newsweek.
"They know how to behave in Putin's presence, they know not to draw too much attention to themselves. "A handful of them have then gone on to high-profile political careers, but most don't," added Galeotti, founder and CEO of Mayak Intelligence. "Nonetheless, it's a major career opportunity, so they're obviously going to want to keep their noses clean and benefit from that." OSINT-Bees said one assistant, Alexey Melnikov, 39, is a graduate of the FSO Academy of Russia and its images seen by Newsweek show him accompanying Putin on official business.
He is also pictured on vacation with his wife on beaches. Sergey Moskalenko, 43, is also named. He likely graduated from the Golitsyn border institute of the FSB of Russia, according to OSINT-Bees, which shared images of him accompanying Putin with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other world leaders.
Konstantin Panin, 43, is another and he is pictured with Putin on domestic trips. OSINT-Bees named the fourth as Ivan Rozhko, 38, from Barybyno, Domodedovo District, in the Moscow Region, another graduate of the FSO Academy of Russia. The role of Putin's assistants was outlined by the Dossier Center, a Russian-language investigative site linked to exiled Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky.
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