Putin visits southern military district HQ in Rostov-on-Don
Vladimir Putin may have been dead for a year, with Russia instead using a series of so-called doppelgangers, a Ukrainian spy chief has sensationally claimed.
Major-General Kyrylo Budanov has previously argued the Russian President has been “sick for some time” and suggested he is suffering from cancer.
And the 37-year-old, who has a reputation for making controversial allegations, told Anzhelika Rudenko during an interview with Radio Svoboda this week: “The Putin who everyone used to know was last seen around June 26, 2022.”
By way of evidence, Mr Budanov, 37, cited a viral video showing Putin glancing at his left wrist only to realise his watch was on the right.
He was subsequently pictured taking the timepiece, thought to be a was on the hand on which it routinely sits £12,500 Russian-made Raketa, and fidgeting with it.
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The meeting in question came one day before a private plan believed to have been carrying Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin crashed a few hundreds miles north-west of Moscow.
In relation to the clip, Budanov was asked: “Is this a real Putin?”
He replied: “Let’s leave it to everyone to decide, so everyone leaves it to their own fantasy.”
Suggesting the person in the video was a body double, Mr Budanov was then put on the spot about whether or not he believed Putin was still alive.
He said: “I don’t know what to answer you.”
Speaking to ABC News in January, Mr Budanov said of 70-year-old former KGB officer Putin: “He has been sick for a long time. I am sure he has cancer.
“I think he will die very quickly. I hope very soon.”
Speaking in October, he suggested it was now “usual practice” for Putin to have body doubles standing in for him.
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He explained: “We know specifically about three people that keep appearing, but how many there are, we don’t know. They all had plastic surgery to look alike.
“The one thing that gives them away is their height. It’s visible in videos and pictures. Also gesturing, body language and earlobes, since they are unique for every person.”
Another video which did the rounds in March focused on the claim that Putin sent a doppelganger to Mariupol in March.
The producers of the clip focused on Putin’s appearance, claiming the ledge on his earlobe, a mole or wrinkles “constantly change”.
Questions about Putin’s health date back years.
A story carried on the General SVR Telegram channel in December claimed he had been forced to stay in the same position for long periods during lengthy meetings, leaning on a table, while seated on a pillow having undergone “proctological surgery”.
General SVR even claimed Putin the 70-year-old needed “special underwear that retains liquids and odours”.
The channel claims the surgery was required after Putin fell down the stairs at his official residence – something the Kremlin denies.
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