Vladimir Putin
The head of the press service of Patriarch Kirill, the priest Alexander Volkov said that in the red box located in the car came to Valaam by President Vladimir Putin, the icon lay. It placed the corresponding post in Facebook.
This box netizens and journalists took to be a fragment of a dress or bag belonging to an unknown companion or companion Putin.
According to Volkov, having arrived, the President opened the back door of the car, where he was a security officer, who “was holding a red box” icon. “Because it happened that I kept the box in 10 minutes, I can say that it was a heavy icon, it is unlikely that the President would be handy to go with her to the temple”, where it was consecrated, Volkov wrote.
The priest also explained the situation with the yacht “Pallada”, which, according to the columnist of “Kommersant FM” Sergey Tsehmistrenko, is a gift to Putin Valaam monastery (this information was disproved by the press Secretary of Russian leader Dmitry Peskov). The head a press-services of the head of the Russian Orthodox Church stated that “many years ago, the use of the Church by the Office of the President were transferred to the yacht “Pallada”, which is sometimes used for walks in the fresh air” Patriarch Kirill. While most of the time she is at the berth.
Wednesday, July 12, at the monastery said that the yacht was donated to the monastery “LUKOIL” in 2005, RIA Novosti reported.
As for the story supposedly with a red bag, the attention it attracted after the publication Tuesday, the TV channel “Zvezda” video. Many wondered who is the companion of the head of state, who sits in the back seat of his car and pointing at something with your finger. Peskov later said that it was the security officer and Kremlin pool journalist Dmitry Smirnov noted that Putin shows where his jacket was.
July 11 the President arrived at the island of Valaam in lake Ladoga, where he attended located there is the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Stavropegial monastery. The President decided to stay for a few days.