Russian PM Went On $500,000 Luxury Vacation At The Height Of Ukraine War: Report

Mikhail Mishustin has led Russia's Federal Tax Service since 2010 SPUTNIK / Alexey NIKOLSKY

KEY POINTS

The Kremlin reportedly released pre-recorded materials to make it appear as if Mishustin was working in August
Mishustin spent $260,000 to reserve cottages for himself and his team in the Altai resort, says the report
Mishustin also availed a bath in deer antler blood during his secret vacation

Russia's Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin went on a luxury vacation that cost at least $500,000 at the height of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, according to a report.

Between Aug. 8 and 14 last year, the Kremlin's press service released materials that showed Mishustin working. However, the Dossier Center on Tuesday revealed the materials were pre-recorded and that the Russian prime minister had been on a secret vacation on the banks of Lake Teletskoye in Altai at the time, citing intel from former Kremlin officer Gleb Karakulov who left his post in October 2022 over the war in Ukraine.

Karakulov also claimed that Mishustin had reserved the entire Altay Village Teletskoe resort for himself and his entourage. The cost of reserving a single house at the resort can go up to 300,000 Russian rubles ($3,726) per night.

However, he noted that the vacation could have been a gift from the resort owners to Mishustin. The Altay Village Teletskoe resort is owned by business entities with connection to Russia-based oligarch and senator Suleiman Kerimov.

"Mishustin and his entourage procured the entire Altay Village Teletskoe resort for themselves, where prices are exorbitant, reaching up to 300,000 rubles ($3,800) a day for a single house. All the cottages were reserved. I was present there with the Prime Minister during that week," Karakulov told the outlet, as translated by The Insider. "It raises a question: how did they afford such a lavish vacation? If the expenses were covered by the budget, then isn't it a little bit too much for one person?"

The outlet's journalists conducted their own investigations and found that Mishustin could have flown to Altai aboard a plane with tail number RA-64522 on Aug. 8 at around 11 a.m. local time. The journalists also found that Mishustin and his team dove into the reserved Teletskoye Lake and availed of a deer antler blood bath while at the resort.

Overall, the trip cost at least 40 million rubles ($500,000), which includes 21 million rubles ($260,000) for the cottages, 1,000 rubles ($13) for a single breakfast at a local restaurant, up to 50,000 rubles ($650) for a bottle of wine and additional expenses for renting boats, helicopters and other amenities during the stay.