Besieged by protesters since the war in Ukraine: Russia Palace in England causes uproar

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Vladimir Putin (71) does not like to talk about his real estate. But thanks to the work of Russian investigative journalists and the team of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny (47), the public was able to learn more about the president’s secret palaces in Russia.

Now another property is making headlines. Unlike the houses in Valday or Gelendzhik, this one does not belong to Putin personally, but is connected to the Russian government.

We are talking about a villa in the heart of Sussex in the south of England. Despite its 50 rooms and extensive garden, the Russian diplomatic villa was previously virtually unknown in the British county. Many locals seemed to have no idea that there was an impressive Russian palace not far from their homes between Flimwell and Hawkhurst.

However, since it became known that the house is a branch of the Russian embassy in London, the palace has become a target for protesters. The British Daily Mail reports this.

Palace became the center of the ‘real opposition’

Residents outraged by the Russian invasion sprayed pro-Ukrainian graffiti at the entrance and hoisted the Ukrainian flag in front of the building.

One of the activists is writer and journalist Rebecca de Saintonge (78). According to her, the building has become a focal point of the “very real opposition” to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

After her protest, two police officers visited her. “I think they were concerned about the safety of the elderly Russian couple who run the house,” De Saintonge said. To defuse the situation, they eventually took down the flags.

Lord once donated the property to the Soviet Union

In addition to the demonstrators, other residents are also concerned about the villa, which has been owned by the Russian government since 1946: “I find it quite strange that the Russian government has a building here in the heart of Kent,” says Lindsay Barrow. , who runs a flower shop in the village, to the newspaper.

But how come the Russian government owns an estate in the middle of the British county? As the report notes, the 19th-century villa was donated to the Soviet government by England’s Lord George Gushen after World War II. The Lord made this generous gesture because the Soviet Union had saved his son’s life.

According to claims, the spacious villa now serves as the country residence of the Russian ambassador Andrej Kelin (66). When the property is not used for diplomatic purposes, it is cared for and managed by an elderly Russian couple. (dzc)

Source: Blick