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Putin Supports Construction of Russian 'Disneyland'

President Vladimir Putin is in support of a plan to build a "kind of" Disneyland amusement park in Russia's Kaluga region, the Kremlin press office reported Thursday.

During a meeting with Putin on Thursday, Kaluga governor Anatoly Artamonov proposed the construction of an amusement park — titled "The Magical World of Russia" — on the border of the Kaluga and Moscow regions. The project is estimated to cost $4 billion, according to the transcript published of the meeting between Putin and Artamonov.

The governor told Putin that the complex will consist of several sections: interactive, educational programs for children; hotels; the largest water park in the world and "a lot of things to learn about Russia and the world."

The region has an investment agreement signed with a company and has allocated 220 hectares of land for the project. Artamonov said that the investors do not ask for government involvement, but are seeking approval for the project. The president gave his support “with pleasure,” according to the meeting's transcript.

These plans were first announced in 2012, but with a different theme and a lower projected cost of approximately $260 million.

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