At a distance of twenty meters Vladimir Putin kept the new ambassadors to Russia during the Kremlin event where the Russian president accepted the diplomatic credentials.

Putin attributing his tenacity to keep distance for health reasons while the scenes of embarrassment that unfolded during the ceremony were reminiscent of times of the Covid pandemic.

The Russian president essentially insisted on a favorite tactic which he followed throughout the pandemic, even during his meetings with leaders of other countries, as well as his own ministers.

The Russian President has appeared largely wary of coming into close contact with anyone outside of his own security personnel.

Typical were the images from his meetings with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz when he received them by interposing a huge table between them with the two sides sitting opposite each other and conversing from a distance.

At the same time, members of the Ministry of Defense and Putin’s own armed forcesincluding Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Army Chief Valery Gerasimov, they suffered the same treatment.

Another fear that imposed distance between the Russian president and his interlocutors was that of an assassination attempt against him though over time rumors began to mount that Putin was suffering from a serious unknown medical condition.

Those rumors intensified shortly after his invasion of Ukraine, with critics, even some Kremlin sources, claiming he may be suffering from cancer or perhaps Parkinson’s disease.

The Kremlin has consistently denied there is anything wrong with Putin’s health.

Putin rarely meets with ordinary Russians, especially after the Covid pandemic, and when he does and comes into direct contact with the citizens like the time he visited Dagestan and was especially cordial with the crowd, there was a strong rumor that it was his salvation.

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