Vladimir Putin Dying? Kremlin Cancels Annual Key Conference Last Minute for First Time in 17 Years

According to a Kremlin official, Vladimir Putin canceled his annual "big end of year press conference" this year, fueling speculation that he is "critically ill."

Since 2012, the Russian president has held an annual press conference in December. The Russian news agency Tass claims Putin held the meeting for the 17th time last year.

Putin Makes Last Minute Cancellation of Significant Event

However, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin's spokesman, stated on Monday that "there will not be a press conference before the New Year."

A story questioned whether the despot from Russia had skipped the summit because of his failing health. They stated that Putin was "battling cancer" and "faces a coup over Ukraine" in an article published on Monday, adding that he was also "critically ill."

The news conference for this year had not been prepared, but it had not been canceled, according to media reports from November. The "problem at the contact line," as the media has since reported, was one of the causes of the cancellation.

The "problem at the contact line," as the media has since reported, was one of the causes of the cancellation, Express reported. Putin refers to the conflict in Ukraine as a "special military operation," but sources imply he has direct control over it. One example is the ongoing attack on Bakhmut in the Donetsk Oblast.

Per Mirror, there has been a lot of speculation regarding Putin's health, including repeated but baseless accusations that he has Parkinson's disease or cancer. Additionally, there are rumors that he had minor surgery over the weekend as a result of an alleged tumble down the stairs at a government building.

The Kremlin refuted claims made by the media that he fell and soiled himself. For the past ten years, a news conference with Putin has been conducted in December, and in 2019, a record 1,895 journalists attended.

Zelensky: Vladimir Putin Fears Death

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that he doesn't think Russian President Vladimir Putin will use nuclear weapons in the conflict because he "loves life" and "fears death."

During a Zoom interview with American television star David Letterman for a special episode of the Netflix series 'My Next Guest Needs No Introduction,' which aired on Monday, Zelensky made the remarks.

"I have my doubts that he is prepared to use nuclear weapons since he is aware that any other state may retaliate against him if he did. Even though he is afraid about COVID-19 or something else, he enjoys this life and sits at his large table. This demonstrates his passion of life and his fear of death."

Zelensky's remark about the "long table" alludes to Putin's conference table, which is frequently visible during his talks with top world figures, including French President Emmanuel Macron in February.

Because he believed that Russia would acquire his DNA, Macron at the time declined to do a COVID-19 test before the meeting. According to two people in the French president's entourage, Reuters claimed at the time that the two world leaders sat at opposite ends of a 13-foot (3.9 meter) long table.