'A new baby, plastic surgery or ill-health? No, Putin disappeared because he's BORED' RUSSIAN president Vladimir Putin has become "bored" of top office and may have merely been taking a break during his recent mystery disappearance from the public eye, according to a former British ambassador.
By LEVI WINCHESTER
PUBLISHED: 14:22, Fri, Mar 20, 2015
The autocratic leader was not seen in public for 11 days earlier this month, sparking rumours of ill health, a baby on the way, plastic surgery and even his own death.
But President Putin reappeared and broke his silence this week, using a television appearance to brush off rumours of his supposed disappearing act.
While the Russian president has yet to reveal the mystery surrounding his almost two-week absence, Sir Tony Brenton, the former British ambassador to Russia, has suggested that Putin can become "cheesed off with the ordinary routine" and may have just been taking time out.
He recalled how, during his four years as an ambassador, the Russian leader would often take "quite long breaks" from Moscow - adding that him having time out is not necessarily "out of pattern".
"He used to disappear off from Moscow and go to his palace on the Black Sea," said Sir Tony.
"And if you think about how Russia runs, he's not the sort of democratically-elected politician who needs to keep himself in the public eye.
"He can afford to disappear and know that he is still in power when he comes back."
He added: "The routine business of governing Russia, at the time when I was there and I am sure this is still true, no longer interests him very much.
"He's been doing it now since 1999, so 15 years, and that stuff doesn't interest him. He occasionally feels the need to take a break from it.
"When there are serious decisions to be taken, actually the people with whom he makes those decisions come to him rather than him having to be in Moscow."
Speaking on Monday during his first public appearance since March 5, the Russian leader made light of his apparent disappearance and said: "It would be boring without gossip."
Sir Tony has suggested that this type of reaction is "very him" and described how Putin likes to feel "slightly on top of the game and ahead of everyone else".
The former ambassador, who met Putin several times between 2004 and 2008, said he also suspected that the Russian president was "immensely amused" by all the rampant speculation surrounding his disappearance.
Sir Tony, who is now a Fellow of Wolfson College at Cambridge University and is writing a book on Russian history, said: "He's a guy with a very sardonic sense of humour, of which I saw examples of over the years.
"He likes the sort of joke where other people look slightly inferior to him and he will have immensely enjoyed the picture of lots of Western commentators creating totally absurd rumours about why he has disappeared."
Speculation over Putin's whereabouts during his absence increased after Russian state television had to retract claims that he had hosted an official visit from the President of Kyrgyzstan.
The Kremlin had also been forced to deny that he has been seriously ill, had died, or was in Switzerland to be with his alleged girlfriend while she gives birth to a baby girl.
But after making his first public appearance since the rumours surfaced, Putin was described as fit - and even in macho mode - during a meeting with the the Kyrgyzstan President, Almazbek Atambayev, near St Petersburg in Russia.
Meanwhile, Putin was joined by tens of thousands of Russian supporters on Thursday as they marked one year since the seizure of Crimea from Ukraine.
The Russian leader reportedly praised his people for their patriotism, something which Sir Tony suggested was "genuine".
He said: "It is important for us in the West to understand that Russians are much more patriotic and nationalistic than we are. It is still regarded as a huge virtue in Russia.
"There is no doubt that one of Russia's great strengths in dealing with the Ukraine issue is that Putin has been able to get all his people to coalesce around him in support of his policies, even though economically it is doing them a lot of damage.
"His praise for Russian nationalism is genuine."
The Prime Minister of Ukraine also spoke out on Thursday - and called for the European Union to remain united behind sanctions on Russia amid the continuing crisis in the east of his country.
Arseniy Yatsenyuk's plea came amid concerns that support for Ukraine is beginning to slip as a cease-fire between Ukraine and separatist rebels takes hold.
