Whenever Vladimir Putin travels abroad, he carries an entire “food convoy” with him. According to a Firstpost report, when his IL-96 aircraft lands in Delhi this evening, it will have a separate compartment packed with Russian tvorog, Russian ice cream, Russian honey and Russian bottled water. It’s not a luxury—so what is it?
Putin Won’t Eat Food Made By Indian Chefs
Like every other time, Putin will once again avoid eating food cooked by Indian chefs. During his 2014 visit to India, an entire floor of Mumbai’s Taj Hotel was taken over by Russia’s Federal Protective Service (FSO). All Indian spices were removed from the hotel kitchen.
Even during the 2018 India–Russia summit in Goa, Russian chefs set up their own stove inside the Hyderabad House kitchen. On October 6, 2018, The Hindu reported: “Biryani and galouti kebabs were prepared at Rashtrapati Bhavan, but Putin ate only his Russian salad and tvorog.”
In 2022, after the SCO Summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan’s President Mirziyoyev tried to serve Putin traditional plov, but he declined. The Kremlin said, “The President has special food and security protocols. Abroad, we use only our own products.”
Does Putin Not Trust Indian Chefs?
Former FSO official and now journalist Andrei Soldatov wrote in his book ‘The New Nobility’ that since 2001, a “portable food laboratory” accompanies Putin on every foreign trip. This lab tests every dish using spectrometers and chemical analysis. The same happened in 2017 at France’s Versailles Palace. French chefs prepared croissants and foie gras, but Putin ate only his sour soup and tvorog.
Putin’s security team does not trust any foreign country or its chefs. According to a report in Russia Today, Putin’s food comes from a special farm outside Moscow, where even the cows that produce milk are monitored 24/7.
This means the dishes made by Indian chefs will remain only for display and photographs. Putin will stick to his Russian food as always.
