[imagesource: Getty Images]

There are more than a few people around the world who wouldn’t mind if Russian President Vladimir Putin was sickly and struggling.

Whether that is the case is very tough to ascertain, given his tight control over the media and reporting in Russia, but rumours are circulating after a recent chat between Putin and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu.

The pair were discussing Russia’s military strategy in Mariupol, a strategic port city in Ukraine where Putin has declared “success”.

Footage appears to show Putin looking rather forlorn and possibly unwell:

Putin is gripping the table, which some have speculated could be to keep his alleged Parkinson’s Disease shakes at bay.

Here’s Illia Ponomarenko, a reporter for the website The Kyiv Independent:

Is this just me or Putin really looks less healthy and sound with each and every day of the war?
I can see a drastic difference between now and late February.

— Illia Ponomarenko 🇺🇦 (@IAPonomarenko) April 21, 2022

And Frida Ghitis, a contributor to CNN:

Putin, sinking in his chair, gripping the table. He’s okay, right? Healthy? https://t.co/PmEo3aZtGY

— Frida Ghitis (@FridaGhitis) April 21, 2022

Louise Mensch, an author and former member of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, also tweeted, recalling an article she wrote about Putin’s poor health:

PS: I reported, Vladimir Putin has Parkinson’s disease and here you can see him gripping the table so that his shaking hand is not visible but he cannot stop his foot from tapping. https://t.co/BCRQzB9haP https://t.co/Yq2GbLxyfo

— Louise Mensch 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@LouiseMensch) April 21, 2022

Economist and author Anders Åslund alluded to Shoigu’s appearance, too:

Putin’s meeting with Shoigu today shows both depressed & seemingly in bad health. Shoigu has to read his comments to Putin & slurs badly, suggesting that the rumors of his heart attack are likely. He sits badly. Poor performance. Worth watching.https://t.co/SHRRxZxbJf

— Anders Åslund (@anders_aslund) April 21, 2022

The Telegraph has more:

His notably bloated face and neck led to suggestions he may be undergoing treatment with steroids, while there were also reports he had been visited by cancer doctors at least 35 times.

Others have put Putin’s diminished appearance down to his military failures in Ukraine, having failed to capture capital Kyiv within days as predicted.

Newsweek reported how earlier this month, the Kremlin denied that Putin had undergone surgery related to thyroid cancer:

…Russian news outlet Proekt published an investigative story that claimed Putin is routinely seen by a team of doctors.

The site alleged that two ear, nose, and throat specialists have regularly visited Putin, as has an oncology surgeon who specializes in thyroid cancer.

Proekt’s report also alleged that Putin had been using an alternative therapy that involves bathing in blood extract from severed deer antlers.

Alright, these are strange times.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the cancer rumours were “fiction and untruth”.

[sources:telegraph&newsweek]