Vladimir Putin will quit in January amid speculation he may have Parkinson’s disease, a Moscow professor has claimed.
The 68-year-old strongman president of Russia is being urged to retire by his former gymnast lover Alina Kabaeva, 37, according to Kremlin critic Professor Valery Solovei – a frequent media pundit in Russia.
His comments came as footage circulated in Russia of Putin’s legs moving around as he gripped onto the armrest of a chair. Eyes are also drawn to a twitching pen in the former KGB operative’s fingers and a cup which analysts have suggested were filled with painkillers.
However, there has been no confirmation from the Kremlin that the president is suffering from the disease.
Earlier this week it emerged that unexpected legislation was being rushed through to ensure that Putin could be made a senator-for-life, sparking speculation that he is planning to quit the Kremlin.
The new draft legislation was introduced by Putin himself, and would guarantee him legal immunity and state perks until he dies.
It is not the first time that people have speculated that Putin may be suffering from Parkinson’s disease.
Others have previously noted his ‘gunslinger’s gait’ – a clearly reduced right arm swing compared to his left, giving him a lilting swagger.
An asymmetrically reduced arm swing is a classic feature of Parkinson’s and can manifest in ‘clinically intact subjects with a predisposition to later develop’ the disease, according to the British Medical Journal.
The phenomenon has been demonstrated in video reviews of football matches played by the legendary Arsenal and Liverpool midfielder Ray Kennedy.