RUSSIA has managed to keep its leader under strict control in a bid to hide his poor health.
It is of the utmost importance for Kremlin to maintain Vladimir Putin’s strongman image.
Moscow has remained tight-lipped as over the past few years Putin has made periodic disappearances from public life, what appearances he makes are carefully stage managed, and there are reportedly even time limits on his meetings with ministers.
The Russian tyrant’s health has long been the source of speculation, with Western intelligence suggesting he has serious health issues such as cancer and Parkinson’s.
Russian officials have always denied the claims there is something wrong with their leader.
But despite Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov insisting that Mad Vlad’s health is “excellent”, his recent public appearances have sparked rumours about his physical state.
The despot seems always surrounded by security, following a detailed programme and only attending a small number of meetings- for a short time.
It appears that every bit of the dictator’s life has been carefully planned, only feeding speculations about his health.
He is believed to be followed by a team of doctors who carefully monitor his health – with him due to turn 70 in October.
The Russian leader was seen trembling in resurfaced footage as he greeted Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
Video showed frail-looking Putin holding his hand out to greet Lukashenko before quickly retracting and walking around the room.
And on Sunday, the Russian President was seen biting his lips and appearing unsteady during a midnight mass for Orthodox Easter, fuelling rumours the Parkinson’s rumours.
But viewers saw the ageing autocrat appearing to shift uncomfortably, sticking out his tongue and chewing his lips.
Previously, Putin was seen slouched, gripping a table and tapping his foot during a meeting with his defence chief.
The tyrant appears with a bloated face, constantly tapping his foot and with his hand gripping the edge of the table for the entire 12-minute meeting.
Putin has long prided himself on his “strongman” image but his dramatic change over the past few years has caused speculation that he may be suffering from a severe physical illness.
Experts have pointed out that he looks “bloated” and “weakened” and has even seen a doctor who specialises in Thyroid cancer.
Back in November 2020, political analyst Valery Solovei claimed Putin underwent surgery and indicated that Mad Vlad is suffering from symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.
And now an investigation has noted how in the past years Kremlin appears to have a tighter grip on Putin’s schedule.
The report by investigative Proekt media states that in his first days as a head of state the tyrant paid little attention to minor health issues such as fever.
An official recalled that “he could only postpone a meeting until the evening if he had a severe infection.”
It was crucial for Kremlin to maintain the leader’s image that they did not mention any health problems at all, including sports injuries.
The only time there has been a mention of his health was last year when Putin himself admitted falling off a horse
He said at the time: “They were once filming me, I was training, and it happened that the horse stopped in front of a barrier and I did a somersault, literally a somersault.”
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