Vladimir Putin appeared to walk with a limp and sat with a blanket over his lap during Victory Day commemorations in Moscow today, raising fresh doubts over his health.
The Russian leader, 69, attended the event – which commemorates Nazi Germany’s surrender in 1945 – to give a speech during which he projected an image of Russian strength and military might despite the faltering war in Ukraine.
But at several points – including as he left a speaking podium and went to the Tomb of the Unknown Solider to lay a wreath – Putin appeared to be walking with a heavy step, as if trying to disguise a limp.
And, during the parade itself, he was seen sitting with a heavy blanket across his knees despite geriatric war veterans being sat around him with their laps uncovered.
On their own either incident would be easy enough to dismiss – but taken together they will do little to dispel persistent rumours that Putin is suffering health issues.
Two years before he decided to invade Ukraine, rumours began swirling about Putin’s health including suggestions he had undergone cancer surgery.
Valery Solovei, a political analyst and prominent Putin critic, began spreading the rumour in late 2020 while also suggesting he was suffering from Parkinson’s.
The rumours gained such traction that the Kremlin was forced to go on record and deny them, with Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov insisting his boss was in ‘excellent health’ and any rumour to the contrary was ‘complete nonsense’.
But the whispering has steadfastly refused to die out and has intensified since the war in Ukraine began, with critics suggesting that Putin looks unwell in TV appearances and is noticeably puffy around his face.
Leaked footage of a meeting with Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko in the early stages of the war also appeared to show pronounced arm and leg tremours.
Shaking is one of the main symptoms of Parkinson’s – a condition that Hitler is thought to have suffered from towards the end of the Second World War.
As Putin sat down with Lukashenko he was seen gripping the arm of his chair – perhaps in an attempt to head off any more shaking.
He then pulled a similar pose – this time gripping the edge of a table – while meeting defence minister Sergei Shoigu a few weeks later.
Then came an Easter Sunday mass during which the Russian leader made unusual fidgeting motions with his lips while listening to the service.
He could be seen making the same lip motions following Monday’s Victory Day parade, as he walked with Shoigu to lay a wreath.
During his speech, Putin blamed Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine on western policies and said it was necessary to ward off potential aggression.
Speaking at a military parade in Red Square to mark the Second World War victory over Nazi Germany, Mr Putin drew parallels between the Red Army’s fighting against the Nazi troops and the Russian forces’ action in Ukraine.
While lambasting the West, Mr Putin gave no indication of a shift in strategies or made any indication he is going to declare a broad mobilisation, as some in Ukraine and the West fear.
Addressing the phalanxes of elite Russian troops filling Red Square, Mr Putin said the campaign in Ukraine was needed to avert ‘a threat that was absolutely unacceptable to us (that) has been methodically created next to our borders’.
‘The danger was rising by the day,’ he claimed, adding ‘Russia has given a pre-emptive response to an aggression’ in a ‘forced, timely and the only correct decision by a sovereign, powerful and independent country’.
The Russian leader has repeatedly accused Ukraine of harbouring aggressive intentions with support from the US and its allies – claims Ukrainian and western officials have denied.
In his speech at the parade, Mr Putin again scolded the West for failing to heed Russian demands for security guarantees and a roll-back to Nato’s expansion, arguing it left Moscow no other choice but to attack Ukraine.
The Russian leader said Russian troops in Ukraine are fighting for the country’s security and called a minute of silence to honour the soldiers killed combat.
Mr Putin said some of the troops taking part in the parade have previously fought in Ukraine.