Putin reassures that Sochi is safe

After two terrorist attacks and dozens killed in Russia this week, President Vladmir Putin made a very public visit to Sochi yesterday, less than five weeks before the start of the Winter Olympics in that city.

Putin’s visit was aimed at reassuring the world that Sochi is going to be a safe place, but with the attacks over the past few weeks, he may have his work cut out for him.

You might say Putin is making sure every Olympic venue is ready for its close-up. He even hit the slopes yesterday where the alpine events will be held, looking relaxed and in control. It was stark contrast to Wednesday, just 400 miles away in Volgograd, where a solemn Putin honored the 34 killed in this week’s twin suicide bombings.

Even as Putin toured Sochi, a bomb threat led to the evacuation of a mall. It was a false alarm, but another sign of nerves on edge since Islamist militants declared war on Putin’s Olympics.

Security is high, 40,000 police and special forces will man checkpoints, drones will monitor overhead, and security boats will patrol the rivers, but geography may be a problem.

Sochi is just a 15 minute drive from the border with Abkazia, a breakaway republic that is considered to be very dangerous.

Despite this fact and the recent attacks, Putin says that these will be the safest games in history.