Bulletproof briefcases and look-alikes: How Putin protects himself from assassins

Russian President and former KGB officer Vladimir Putin has demonstrated his obsession with detail, both in politics and his personal life. How does such the former KGB officer protect himself from potential threats against his life?  

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) thrust this concern into the public interest when he called for a Russian “Brutus” to take one for the team and assassinate his president.

“The only way this ends is for somebody in Russia to take this guy out,” Graham tweeted last week. “You would be doing your country - and the world - a great service.”

Is there a Brutus in Russia? Is there a more successful Colonel Stauffenberg in the Russian military?

The only way this ends is for somebody in Russia to take this guy out.

You would be doing your country - and the world - a great service.

— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) March 4, 2022

The Federal Protection Service (FSO) is the secretive agency charged with protecting Putin, who they dub “body number one.” There is no public data about its operations but reports from Russia Beyond, run by the state-funded TV-Novosti, illuminate some of the technique his bodyguards employ to keep their leader safe.

Four circles of security

Russia Beyond reports that Putin’s bodyguards operate in four “circles” whenever he makes a public appearance. The “first circle” are his personal bodyguards who are responsible for shielding the president with their bodies. They are required to keep their hands in front of their bodies so they are always prepared to act.

The “second circle” consists of plainclothes agents dressed to blend in with the crowd as they keep an eye out for potential attackers, while the “third circle” patrols the edge of the crowd and keeps suspicious people away.

Finally, the “fourth circle” are the snipers and other agents conducting surveillance from nearby buildings. Any sudden movements can make you target.

In addition to his on-site security, a team examines any of Putin’s accommodations one month in advance. Everything is repaired to the last doorknob so that no repairmen will need access to the living quarters while he is there.

Bulletproof briefcases

The FSO has access to a wide range of gear to help agents perform their duties. Bodyguards may sometimes carry briefcases and Kevlar umbrellas they can open and shield Putin with. They also reportedly carry pistols that can fire 9x21mm Gyurza armor-penetrating bullets. Signal jammers are deployed around the president’s location to block the remote detonation of any bombs.

The armored vans that accompany Putin’s motorcade are mobile armories, complete with assault and sniper rifles, anti-tank grenade launchers and portable anti-aircraft missile launchers.

Sociological Research

In a separate article about the FSO’s history, Russia Beyond revealed that FSO is engaged in “sociological research projects” on the population. The data collected is reported to state leadership, which is reportedly used by Putin, the Security Council and the government to make decisions.

Body doubles

The term “body number one” implies the existence of a “body number two,” at least.

Russia Beyond acknowledged the longstanding rumors that the FSO sometimes employs a “presidential body double” for events deemed especially risky.

Putin acknowledged to the BBC in 2020 that the agency offered him a lookalike during the country’s conflict with separatists in Chechnya. However, he said he has “declined these body doubles” on every occasion he was offered them.

Tasters for poison

Putin has someone sample every meal he is served for poison, revealed the founder of the “Club des Chefs des Chefs,” an organization of chefs who cook for heads of state around the world.

“Tasters still exist but only in the Kremlin, where a doctor checks every dish with the chef,” Gilles Bragard told The Telegraph in 2012. This was reportedly confirmed by Putin’s head chef, Vakhtang Abushidi.

The FSO is also responsible for the protection of other key Russian figures, including as the Prime Minister, Chairs of the State Duma and Federation Council, and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense.

The Russian president is not above ordering assassinations himself. Hit squads in Ukraine are targeting Ukrainian officials, including President Volodymyr Zelensky, reportedly on Putin’s orders.

Russian agents have also been suspected to be involved in assassination attempts against targets in the United Kingdon, such as the 2006 poisoning death of Russian defector Alexander Litvinenko with radioactive polonium-210 and 2018 attack on double agent Sergei Skripal with Novichok nerve agent.