PARANOID Vladimir Putin has introduced a vast no-go zone around his secret forest palace where his gymnast lover reportedly lives.
The Russian tyrant's luxury bolthole on the edge of Lake Valdai is a sprawling estate boasting a palatial main residence, guesthouses, a golf course and a massive spa complex.
Putin's gymnast lover Alina Kabaeva, 39, is said to live in the lavish hideaway – hidden from public view by thick tree cover – with the pair's young children.
And a vast new exclusion zone – larger than the Isle of Wight and the Mediterranean island of Malta – has now been brought in around the residence.
A swathe of Valdai National Park has become a no-go zone amid Putin's fury over the exposé of the tyrant's secret life with Kabaeva – revealing the £100million mansion she is alleged to live in with their kids.
According to Meduza, part of the area around the estate has now been turned into a "specially protected natural area" – banning the public from stepping foot in the zone for hunting or fishing.
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Lake Valdai is divided in two by a collection of islands in the middle – and the half nearest to Putin's shoreside palace has been shut off to visitors.
Guarded by a federal security service, trespassers on the complex and exclusion zone face two years "correctional labour" and fines of up to £5,300.
Under the new no-go zone, visitors can no longer access part of the lake near the Iversky monastery – located on an island popular with tourists and pilgrims.
"Now half of Valdai is completely closed to boats and vacationers, according to the official version — because of the poor ecological condition," the Meduza report said.
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One resident told Meduza: "The authorities are slowly squeezing out more and more territories."
The fresh crackdown to curb access to the area around Putin's lavish home has been bizarrely branded an "ecological" move to protect Lake Valdai.
But locals claim there has been no deterioration in the lake’s pristine condition – and believe the move has been made to protect Putin from prying eyes.
Putin was said to be fuming over reports his Valdai palace complex is paid for by a taxpayer slush fund.
General SVR Telegram claimed "no one has seen the president so furious".
He reportedly told officials it was "the FSB leadership's fault that they didn't keep a secret that was more serious than a state secret".
Putin and Kabaeva are rumoured to have between two and four young children – but the 13-year relationship has never been publicly acknowledged.
Kabaeva – an Olympic gold-medal winning rhythmic gymnast – is known to own a large wooden home in the sprawling grounds which she shares with their children.
This is separate from the main "golden" mansion.
Recent reports claim Kabaeva gave birth to one Putin child in 2015 in Switzerland, and another four years later in Moscow.
Unnamed officials claimed they had spotted kids on the premises and satellite images taken between 2016 and 2020 showed a playground in the woods, which is believed to have been built for the family.
The luxury complex is dubbed Putin’s “most secret official dacha".
The sprawling lakeside estate seen on drone footage includes a stable, golf course, mini-golf course, VIP restaurant with a cinema, bowling, billiard room and even a mini-casino.
The luxurious spa has massage baths, a 25-metre pool surrounded by contrasting hot tubs as well as saunas and a Turkish bath, and a Thai massage podium.
Two floors are also hidden underground replete with a cryo chamber for extreme cold therapy, and a mud bath, in a 75,350sq ft relaxation facility.
It comes after Putin reportedly set up major air defences at the secret forest palace to guard his mistress and children from aerial attack.
A Pantsir-S1 missile battery was spotted close to the tyrant's opulent lair on Lake Valdai, days after similar anti-aircraft rockets were deployed on rooftops in Moscow.
A radar-guided missile launcher was also set up near Putin's official residence just outside the capital, pictures shared online appear to show.
Both his homes are now protected from possible attack from drones or long-range missiles launched from Ukraine.
Mad Vlad – said to be suffering mania as a side-effect of cancer drugs – reportedly fears being toppled as a result of his disastrous war in Ukraine.
New images appear to show the mobile Pantsir-S1 battery stationed in the village of Yascherovo, half-way between Moscow and St Petersburg.
The high-tech launcher has anti-aircraft guns and radar-guided rockets designed to bring down jets, drones and cruise missiles at a range of up to 12 miles.
Three servicemen are constantly nearby, and the radar dish rotates scanning for threats, according to a report by Agentstvo Novosti.
"These air defence systems protect President Vladimir Putin and his family from a possible Ukrainian strike,” the report said.
"This conclusion can be drawn after the air defence system appeared near the Valdai presidential residence.
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"There are simply no other sites for protection there, except for the residence."
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