What is the FSO?
To understand how Vladimir Putin maintains his grip on power, you must understand the FSO. The Federal Protective Service functions as the Kremlin’s praetorian guard. It secures top leaders, controls presidential communications, and shields the regime from internal and external threats.
Origins and Evolution
The FSO traces its roots back to the KGB’s Ninth Directorate, which guarded Soviet leaders. After the USSR collapsed, Russia retained and expanded this elite structure. In 1996, it became the FSO, inheriting the authority and culture of its Soviet predecessor.
Structure and Oversight
The FSO reports directly to the president. It controls thousands of officers and maintains its own military units, counterintelligence departments, and technical divisions. Unlike the FSB or GRU, its mission is not external operations but the personal survival of the leadership.
Mission and Duties
The FSO protects the president, senior officials, and state facilities like the Kremlin. It controls secure communications, manages the command bunker system, and even oversees parts of Russia’s nuclear command infrastructure. This makes it indispensable to the continuity of government.
Secrecy and Power
The agency operates in deep secrecy. Its size and budget remain classified, and it reports little to civilian oversight. This opacity fuels speculation about its true power. What is clear is that it ensures no threat — from protest to coup — can reach the president without overwhelming resistance.
Role in Hybrid Stability
Although less visible abroad, the FSO plays a hybrid role by projecting the image of regime invulnerability. Its control over communications and protection of leadership ensures stability in times of crisis. This allows the Kremlin to pursue external aggression without fear of collapse from within.
Strategic Importance
The FSO symbolises the Kremlin’s obsession with security. It guarantees Putin’s survival, safeguards the chain of command, and reinforces the authoritarian system. For Europe, understanding the FSO means recognising the fortress mentality that underpins Moscow’s hybrid war against the West.
