Putin's Clutching At Table In Video Raises Serious Health Concerns

Vladimir Putin’s health has been called into question after a video showed him clutching a table throughout a meeting with Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu.

Photo Insert: Putin was visited by a thyroid cancer specialist 35 times, and an ears, nose, and throat (ENT) specialist 59 times between 2016 and 2020.

The clip has spurred fresh theories about his health, which has reportedly worsened since he launched the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, Lamiat Sabin wrote for the UK’s The Independent.

In the footage posted online by the Kremlin, the 69-year-old Russian president grabs hold of the corner of the table with his right hand as soon as he sits down for the meeting, and keeps hold of it for the entirety of the 12 minute clip. Putin can also be seen intermittently holding the edge of the table with his left hand while Shoigu reads him a statement about Mariupol.

The footage shows Putin’s right thumb constantly moving as he listens to his defense minister, and it has been hinted the fidgeting shows he was trying to hide a tremor typical of Parkinson’s disease.

Also on Thursday, he was seen holding the corner of a table during a meeting with Nikolay Tokarev, the president of Transneft, a Russian state-controlled oil pipeline company.

Sir Richard Dearlove – former MI6 head – and Prof. Gwythian Prins – once a NATO adviser – have claimed that Putin has shown signs of the progressive nervous system disorder. In the clip, Putin moves his feet up and down, appears restless and tense, and clears his throat a number of times while listening to Shoigu – who reportedly suffered a heart attack at the age of 66.

Putin also sits slightly hunched, with his spine pressed flat against the back of the chair, in contrast to Shoigu who appears to be sitting more upright and without the need for any support. Anders Aslund, an author and former adviser on Russia and Ukraine, said that both men looked like they were not in good health.

Putin was visited by a thyroid cancer specialist 35 times, and an ears, nose, and throat (ENT) specialist 59 times between 2016 and 2020, according to Russian investigative news outlet Proekt.

The Kremlin leader’s bloated appearance has led to Fiona Hill, a US expert on Russia, to tell Politico in February that Putin may be taking high doses of steroids for back pain he has suffered since falling off a horse in 2012 – or “there may be something else,” she added.

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