Vladimir Putin
Zelensky Calls Putin a ‘Nobody,’ Dismisses Prospect of Peace talks Photo by Alexey Maishev/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images

Intelligence officials claimed that Vladimir Putin could “disappear” from his position due to declining health. The recent revelation was a sudden development amid rumors that the 70-year-old Russian leader is rapidly deteriorating and implied that Putin has been preparing to step down.

According to MSN, reports on the battlefield suggested that Russia’s war had gone from bad to worse. Putin’s political career is standing on the edge of a knife as Russian forces continue their struggle to take control of Ukraine for almost a year since its invasion.

Sir Richard Dearlove, the former head of MI6 said Putin has probably faced another call-up which he noted was clearly and” deeply unpopular in Russia.” He added that tensions within the Kremlin and across Russia were likely reaching their breaking point. He previously predicted that Putin would likely be deposed on grounds of his health condition. Even if Putin is placed in a sanatorium and quietly disappeared, the regime would relatively remain the same but with someone else in charge, Dearlove suggested.

Rumors have been making rounds citing how Putin’s supposed health deterioration may have affected his decision-making– particularly his decision to launch a “special military operation” against Ukraine. The latest development in the war in Ukraine made it seem like Russia’s new offensive strategy was simply throwing its soldiers “into a meat grinder”.

“The east is losing a lot of people, they don’t care about that,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said during a recent interview. He added that Putin’s troops were treated like cannon fodder as the Ukrainian leader noted Russian casualties in a recent battle rang up over 1,000 dead soldiers.

Meanwhile, Putin is observed to be growing paranoid, as reports said he has installed personal rocket launchers in some of his residences. One image showed the Pantsir S1 air defense system installed near his presidential lake hideaway at Valdai in Novgorod. A similar weapon was also installed just six miles from Putin’s official residence in Moscow. Sources said the installation of such weapons systems was for the purpose of protecting his family from a possible strike from Ukraine. There were also rumors that his family has been living in several bunkers complexes throughout the country.

Vladimir Putin
Russia's President Vladimir Putin visits the Vostochny cosmodrome, some 180 km north of Blagoveschensk, Amur region, on April 12, 2022. Photo by Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images

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