Video shows Putin 'uncontrollably convulsing' during meeting with Lukashenko

26 April 2022, 20:02

Further questions are being raised over Vladimir Putin's health after recent footage emerged showing the Russian President appearing to suffer from an "uncontrollable convulsive movement".

In footage from a recent Kremlin meeting, the Russian leader appears to be "unsteady and distracted" and can be seen making erratic hand movements.

Putin can be seen moving to greet Belarusian President and ally in the Ukraine war, Alexander Lukashenko.

As he walks towards his counterpart, Mr Putin appears to be unsteady, walking stiffly and makes strange hand motions which have been rumoured to be hand spasms.

Claims surrounding the Russian president have previously suggested he is undergoing steroid treatment. Others speculated he may be showing signs of Parkinson's.

It comes after he was spotted swaying during an Easter Mass conducted by the Russian Orthodox Church. The president was recorded shifting uncomfortably, sticking out his tongue and biting his lips during the service.

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He was also captured tightly gripping a table in an important meeting with Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu, allegedly to stop himself from shaking.

Hunched and appearing 'bloated' in the face, Putin was seen in the clip opposite Shoigu where he claimed Russia had 'liberated' the besieged city of Mariupol, and ordered a halt to the attack on the final Ukrainian stronghold in the city.

The video clip shows Putin speaking to Shoigu gripping the edge of the table with his right hand, and tapping his foot.

Shoigu was described as 'slurring his words' in the footage and was reading from notes. Some reports suggest he may have been recovering from a heart attack.

The Kremlin has continued to deny that Vladimir Putin is suffering from ill health.

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Former MI6 head Sir Richard Dearlove and former Nato adviser Professor Gwythian Prins have both claimed that Putin has shown signs of the progressive nervous system disorder.

Whilst Former Tory MP Louise Mensch said: "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."

An investigation by Proekt, a media organisation which is banned in Russia, reported that Putin is constantly followed by surgeon Yevgeny Selivanov, from Moscow's Central Clinical Hospital.

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Speaking on Tuesday about Ukraine, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: "The first thing that has to happen is Putin has to lose in Ukraine and he has to fully withdraw the troops.

"We have to see the perpetrators held to account for the war crimes that they have committed and we also need to make sure that not only is Ukraine's future security protected, but also that Russian aggression of this nature can never happen again.

"The reality is at present the Russians simply aren't serious about negotiations, their claims of humanitarian corridors have proved to be false, they either lead to Russia or they have been appallingly booby trapped against the civilian population."

She added: "Our overall package of humanitarian, economic and military support is worth two billion dollars and I can confirm that today two convoys and more than 40 fire engines have now arrived in Ukraine packed with rescue equipment, and we're supplying 22 more ambulances to Ukraine equipped with paramedic kits and medical grab bags."

The UK Ministry of Defence said it has seen reports that the city of Kreminna, in the eastern region of Luhansk, has fallen to the Russians.

Amid "heavy fighting" in Izium and forces trying to advance to the cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk, the intelligence update said Moscow's troops are "likely attempting to encircle heavily fortified" positions.