The health of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who will turn 70 in Octoberis the subject of all kinds of rumors, which reveal the lack of information about the well-being of the president, who ordered the invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
(Read here: Putin makes his bodyguards store his trash while he travels)
During his last two spells, almost nothing has been leaked about his true health, except for pictures that seem to indicate he is in good shape: Putin riding a horse, Putin hunting without a shirt, Putin a judoka…
(May interest you: Vladimir Putin was treated for cancer in April, US says)
But as the Russian president gets older and his body has changed over the years – his face looks swollen, his movements sometimes seem tense – Speculation about a possible disease is growing.
Putin drowns in icy waters to celebrate Orthodox Epiphany (file photo).
Agence France-Presse / Alexey Druzhinin
What are the rumors circulating?
Russian site project Publication of the most comprehensive investigation into Putin’s health.
Independent media concluded that the president’s trips to his home in the Black Sea city of Sochi in recent years coincided with the arrival of a large group of doctors. Among them was a thyroid cancer specialist Yevgeny Silivanov.
The only time the Kremlin confirmed that Putin had a health problem was in the fall of 2012, when he disappeared from view and canceled meetings.
At that time, some rumors spoke of bloodbaths extracted from the antlers of Siberian deer, It is supposed to improve life expectancy and sexual activity, It is a method recommended by the Russian Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu, who is originally from Siberia.
According to the French weekly Paris Match, during his visit to France in 2017 and Saudi Arabia in 2019, Putin took to the bathroom a team responsible for collecting his faeces to avoid any sample that could give information about his health..
This was reported by Newsweek, citing US intelligence sources In April, Putin was treated for advanced cancer. The US National Security Council denied being the source of the information. The head of Ukrainian intelligence, General Kirillo Budanov, told Sky News that Putin had cancer.
What information is there?
The only time the Kremlin confirmed that Putin had a health problem was in the fall of 2012, when he disappeared from view and canceled meetings.
At the time, the Kremlin reported muscle fatigue and a Russian newspaper reported back problems. According to Proekt’s page, major health problems arose during this period.
The covid-19 pandemic has caused the Russian president to act strangely, according to observers, reflecting his paranoia.
Officially, the head of state is vaccinated, but unlike most of his counterparts around the world, no photo has been released of him receiving his dose.
Its visitors are subject to strict precautionary measures, including days of quarantine or in the case of French President Emmanuel Macron, a giant oval table that kept him at a distance from the Russian leader during a tense meeting in the Kremlin.
Only visitors who agreed to take the tests – which Macron refused – are allowed to approach and shake hands with Putin.
Russian President Vladimir Putin passes by a soldier during the Victory Day Parade commemorating the Soviet victory in World War II in Moscow.
EFE / Maxim Shipnikov
What does the Kremlin say?
A spokesman for the Russian presidency, Dmitry Peskov, always denied this information.
“I don’t think that someone with a full head can see in this person (Putin) signs of illness or any affection,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told France’s TF1 network at the end of May.
“If you think something is wrong with President Putin, you are the most unfortunate person in the world,” Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, an ally of Putin, said in an interview with Japanese television in March.
In his recent appearances, including a forum on Peter the Great and a meeting with the President of Turkmenistan, Serdar Berdymukhamedov, Putin showed no sign of weakness.
Because it is important?
Most observers believe that Putin, with no clear successor in the Kremlin, will run again in 2024 after controversial constitutional changes that allow him to run for a third term.
“The state does not have an iota of truth about the physical and emotional state of its president,” Brookt editor-in-chief Roman Badanen laments.
“The whole planet does not know if a person who can destroy humanity by pressing a red button is healthy,” he says. And this may be a key element as he leads a bloody war in Ukraine, the outcome of which will affect the future of Europe.
France Press agency
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