By the evening edition.
The Kremlin is a 27.5 hectare fortress located in the heart of Moscow, the capital of Russia. It was the residence of the tsars, the seat of the Soviet government, and today it is the seat of the Russian Federation. And the epicenter of the policy led by Vladimir Putin, whose upheavals shake Western countries.
A vast fortress surrounded by high red walls, crenellated and topped with twenty towers. The heart of Russia's executive power is here, in the Kremlin, right in Moscow. It is within these walls that Vladimir Putin has ruled the country with an iron fist for a quarter of a century. It is also that the President of the Russian Federation has taken some of his decisions since the start of the war in Ukraine, that he delivers his official speeches and receives his distinguished guests, such as the North Korean dictator Kim Jong- one in September 2023. The Kremlin, which is also a way of describing Russian power, embodies the epicenter of Putin's aggressive policy towards his rivals, as recently when he threatened Western countries with strikes. , on the 21st November 2024.
The Kremlin is above all a real city within a city, which stretches over 27.5 hectares. This vast collection of historic buildings served as the residence of the Russian tsars, the seat of the Soviet government and, today, that of the Russian Federation. Here's everything you need to know about this impressive complex.
One of the “most important fortifications in Europe”
Several cities in Russia have “kremlins”, a term which designates the “central and fortified part of ancient Russian cities”as the dictionary explains Larousse. The most famous of them being that of Moscow.
The first mentions of fortifications at its current location date back to the 12th century.e century, indicates UNESCO, which has included places like the neighboring Red Square on its World Heritage List. The group of buildings has developed, expanded, and changed appearance over the centuries. Until today becoming one of the “largest fortifications in Europe”.
Thus, the red brick walls of the Kremlin were built at the end of the 15th century.e century by Italian builders invited by Tsar Ivan III, recalls the encyclopedia Britannica. Same thing for the twenty rounds. Some are also topped with red stars installed during the Soviet era. Inside these walls stretches “one of the most beautiful, most striking architectural ensembles in the world”again according to the word of the British encyclopedia. A collection of palaces and cathedrals which, for some, can be visited.
But the Kremlin is above all the heart of Russian power. From the 13the century, places become “the center of the secular and spiritual life of the State”according to Unesco. They will be the residence of the tsars, before Peter the Great moves the capital to Saint Petersburg in the 18th century.e century.
But even after this change, the Kremlin “retained its ceremonial role with religious functions”notes UNESCO: the tsars, for example, were crowned in the Dormition Cathedral, located inside the complex of buildings.
“Kremlin Policies”
After the revolution of 1917, the Bolsheviks made Moscow the capital of the USSR. The Soviet government sits in the Kremlin. They are erecting new buildings there, too, such as “building 14” where the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union will sit. Built in 1934, it was destroyed in 2016.
After the fall of the Soviet regime in 1991, the Kremlin housed the government of the Russian Federation and became the residence of the Russian president. Current President Vladimir Putin mainly uses the one in Novo-Ogaryovo, west of Moscow. This was indicated in an article published in 2019 by Russia Beyond – a website operated by Russian state media, says the US State Department.
The Russian presidency, “has offices in many buildings in Moscow, inside the Kremlin” as well as in other places in the Russian capital, we read on Kremlin.ru.
The official Kremlin website even offers a virtual tour of the presidential palace and its surroundings, with images of places inaccessible to tourists, the site specifies. Particularly from the Senate, “where is the President's office”, as well as at the great palace, where “official ceremonies, international meetings and meetings with the participation of the head of state are organized”. The site specifies that these images were taken in 2018 and that certain details may have evolved.
A palace abandoned by Putin
While the border with Ukraine is approximately 400 km from Moscow, the Kremlin remains an ultra-protected and monitored place. And a potential target for Ukrainian drones or missiles as well as for terrorist attacks. In May 2023, Moscow accused Ukraine of having targeted official buildings. As shown in a video broadcast by Russian media, a device had exploded in a shower of flames at the top of the dome of the Senate Palace. Moscow then claimed to have shot down two Ukrainian drones and pointed the finger at kyiv, accusing it of being responsible for what it considered to be an attempt on the life of Vladimir Putin, which Volodymyr Zelensky had firmly denied.
The Kremlin spokesperson told Russian media that the Russian president was not there at the time of the attack. According to him, the latter worked in his official residence in Novo-Ogariovo, 25 kilometers west of Moscow.
According to The ParisianVladimir Putin would also have abandoned the Kremlin in favor of this ultra-secure residence, since the start of the war in Ukraine, and more especially since this attack. According to Jean de Gliniasty, former French ambassador to Moscow, he is in reality very rarely present in the presidential palace. The decor of his Kremlin office would even be recreated for the purposes of his television appearances in the different places where the Russian president is.
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