A video that was broadcast yesterday by Russian state television and that circulated yesterday on social networks of a meeting between Vladimir Putin and his Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu, revived rumors regarding the state of health of the Russian president.
Although the media initially picked up on the Ukrainian theory that the meeting might be a montagesince, according to this version, General Shoigu would be recovering from an alleged heart attack suffered in March, an additional detail caught the attention of users and was compiled by American site Newsweek.
Throughout the meeting, in which they celebrated the supposed “liberation” of the port city of Mariupol, Putin clings tightly to the edge of the table. Also, the president looks uncomfortable, he moves his right foot over and over once more and is extremely stooped, Unlike his habitually rigid posture.
“Is it just me or does Putin really seem less sane and healthy with each day of war?” tweeted Illia Ponomarenko, a journalist for the website The Kyiv Independent. “I can see a drastic difference between now and the end of February.”
However, according to the media Ukrainian Pravda, the strange curvature of Putin’s back in the video is a product of montage.
“Putin, sinking in his chair, grabbing the table. It’s ok right? Healthy?”, wrote, for his part, Frida Ghitis, CNN columnist.
Louise Mensch, author and former UK Member of Parliament, jumped on the speculation and shared an article she had written last month that speculated that Putin might be hiding an illness. “Informed [que] Vladimir Putin has Parkinson’s disease and here you can see him gripping the table so his shaking hand isn’t visible, but he can’t stop his foot from hitting,” he tweeted.
The Swedish economist specializing in Russia, Ukraine and Eastern Europe also commented on Twitter regarding the video: “Putin’s meeting with Shoigu today shows that both are depressed and apparently in poor health. Shoigu has to read his comments to Putin and speaks foul, suggesting that rumors of his heart attack are likely. He feels bad. Bad performance. Worth seeing”.
In any case, it is not the first time that the press has speculated on the president’s health. Earlier this month, project, a Russian independent media, published an extensive investigation in which he analyzed records of Putin’s medical visits over the years.
According to the article, in recent months an expert thyroid cancer surgeon has accompanied the president on numerous occasionsso the media concluded that he might suffer from this disease.
According to the Moscow Times, journalist Alexei Venediktov wrote on his Telegram channel that he had asked the Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, regarding this rumour. “Fiction and lies”, the spokesman replied.
For years the Kremlin has sought to present a vigorous image of the president and has concealed any ailments or illnesses, including a low-grade fever or injury from a fall from a horse.
