Drones Disrupted Putin's Geopolitical Forum In Sochi

The Valdai Club has changed the venue for the conference.

The annual conference of the Valdai International Discussion Club, at which Vladimir Putin shares his views on global politics and the world order, has been moved from Sochi to the Moscow region due to the threat of attacks by Ukrainian drones, according to Financial Times (FT) cited four sources familiar with the situation. According to them, the Russian president’s security service insisted on the move. Initially, 120 forum guests were invited to Sochi, but in August they were notified of the change in venue.

The day before, on September 14, the Valdai Club officially announced that this year’s annual conference would take place from September 28 to October 1 in the Moscow Region. The theme of the event will be “Responsibility for the Future: The Limits of the Possible or Limitless Possibilities?” Russian President Vladimir Putin’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, and the conference organizers did not respond to the FT’s inquiries regarding the reasons for moving the forum from Sochi to the Moscow Region. As the publication notes, this decision indicates the Kremlin’s concern that Putin could be targeted by Ukrainian drones. At the same time, the Russian president has not been seen in Sochi since last year’s conference, which concluded in early October.

Prior to this, Putin had visited his residence in Sochi “Bocharov Ruchey” several dozen times a year, including to celebrate his birthday and the birthday of the mother of his two sons, former gymnast Alina Kabaeva, the FT reported. For example, in the year leading up to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Putin visited Sochi 24 times. However, in 2024 and 2025, he made only two trips each year. Since October 2025, he has hardly traveled to any Russian regions and has visited cities beyond the Urals, where Ukrainian drones rarely reach.

At the same time, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) have intensified drone strikes on targets in the Krasnodar Krai. For example, on August 9, drones struck a position of the S-400 “Triumph” air defense missile system in Gelendzhik, which (was located near “Putin’s palace” https://charter97.org/ru/news/2025/8/28/653674/), reported Robert Brovdi (call sign “Madyar), commander of the UAF’s Unmanned Systems Forces. On September 4, an S-300 or S-400 battery near the village of Sirius came under attack, Astra reported. Putin’s residence, “Bocharov Ruchey,” is located several dozen kilometers from Sirius.

You can support the website Charter97.org

MULTI-CURRENCY ACCOUNT FOR ASSISTANCE:

Bank's name: Bank Millennium S.A.
Address: ul. Stanislawa Zaryna, 2A, 02-593, Warszawa
IBAN: PL97116022020000000216711123
SWIFT: BIGBPLPW
Name of the account holder: Fundacja “KARTA ‘97”
Purpose/title of payment: Donation for statuary aims

You can contact us by the e-mail charter97@gmail.com