Vladimir Putin Displays Erratic Behavior Amid Reports About His Deteriorating Health

UFA, RUSSIA - JANUARY 24: Russian President Vladimir Putin visits the Ufa Engine Industrial Assosication on January 24, 2018 in Ufa, Russia. Vladimir Putin is on a one-day trip to the capital of Bashkortostan Republic and is on course to be re-elected during the Presidential Elections on March 18. ( Photo by Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images)

New photos of Russian president Vladimir Putin have ignited speculation about his declining health.

During a meeting with Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel last week, the leader seemed to be behaving erratically.

He can be seen in some photos gripping a chair as if in pain, and some noticed there was a strange purple tint to his hands. He was also filmed shuffling his feet and fidgeting constantly throughout the meeting. Some observers called his condition as “shaky” and “unsteady.”

The two presidents met in Moscow to unveil a new monument to Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro. Both leaders gave speeches praising Castro.

“The Soviet Union and Russia have always, and continue to this day, to support the Cuban people in their struggle for independence, sovereignty,” Putin said.

His questionable behavior follows ongoing rumors about his health problems. Earlier this month, a Kremlin-linked Telegram channel alleged that Putin was taking a large cocktail of psychotropic drugs to address early-stage Parkinson’s, pancreatic cancer and increasing paranoia.

A Ukrainian official recently claimed that Putin will not stop the war against Ukraine despite being unwell “physically or mentally.”

One day after the meeting with Diaz-Canel, he was seen similarly gripping a desk during a meeting. Conjecture about the health of the Russian leader has gone on for years despite the Kremlin’s repeated denial of the reports.