Speculation is growing as to the health and whereabouts of Vladimir Putin after the Russian President was not glimpsed in public for over 10 days.
Putin was last seen delivering a speech on 5 February, and his continuing absence has prompted a flurry of rumours as to the wellbeing of the Russian leader.
Russian state media has recently broadcast footage of the Kremlin leader meeting officials. However, it appears to have been pre-recorded, adding to the speculation that something is afoot.
The 73-year-old has long been rumoured to be suffering from a health condition, although it remains unclear exactly what. Over the years he has been seen at various points with a tremor in his hands, twitching legs, and a swollen face.
He has vanished from public view for days at a time in recent years with no explanation given, prompting many outlandish rumours including that he has died and the Kremlin is using body doubles.
Other unconfirmed reasons include that Putin has suffered from various types of cancer or Parkinson’s disease, and is receiving medical treatment.
The last time Putin was seen in public, at a ceremony launching the Year of the Unity of the Peoples of Russia at the Russia National Centre, in Moscow on Thursday 5 February (Photo: Vyacheslav Prokofyev/ Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)Although his frequent absences remain a mystery, Volodymyr Zelensky warned on Friday that Putin did not have much time left.
The Ukrainian President, 48, told the Munich Security Conference: “I’m younger than Putin – this is important. He doesn’t have too much time.”
Putin’s health problems are a ‘closely guarded secret’
Experts say that Putin appears to be suffering from some kind of condition, but that claims about specific diseases were often just optimistic speculation.
“We know that Putin is not a well man because anybody that has observed him over time has seen the fluctuations in his physical condition,” said Keir Giles, associate fellow of the Russia and Eurasia programme at the international affairs think-tank Chatham House in London.
“He can look really quite ill, including in public appearances, with his bloated, puffy face and his clinging on to the edges of tables or desks.
“His speeches, which are limited to just a few minutes, are a huge contrast from when he seems far healthier and is robust and giving four-hour speeches and plainly much more at ease.”
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Putin did not have much time left (Photo: Johannes Simon/Getty Images)Giles said Putin’s health condition would be a “very closely guarded secret within Russia”.
He added that there would be doctors attached to Western intelligence services trying to work out Putin’s symptoms from his television appearances, but “for the time being, [he keeps] bouncing back”.
The Russian leader disappearing from the public eye has become a fairly routine occurrence.
In April 2025, Putin was not seen in public for eight days, the Russian investigative website Agentstvo said. Before that, his last absence was over the New Year holiday period between 29 December 2024 to 8 January 2025.
During those disappearances, Russian state television used clips of the Russian leader that, Agentstvo said, made it difficult to determine the date of filming, and looked like they were filmed in advance.
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“It’s not unusual for him to drop out of sight for a bit,” Giles said. “Every time he does, there is exciting speculation about exactly what the reason could be, whether it is health-related or whether it’s some other cause, and always some speculation that tends to be a little bit of optimism that finally he might have dropped off his perch.”
Giles said he expected Putin to reappear soon without any explanation.“Ordinarily, he resurfaces, often looking healthier than before,” he said.
The Kremlin has always denied that Putin is unwell.
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