Speculation is mounting in Russia over the whereabouts of Russia’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, amid reports of heavy losses in the war against Ukraine.
One report said that he is in poor health, but Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to confirm it.
Israeli’s Daily Sabah reported that Shoigu resurfaced in a short snippet of video footage aired by state media on Thursday.
Shoigu, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, was spotted on a split screen of top officials as Putin met his security council remotely in footage aired by Russia’s RIA news agency.
He did not speak in the video broadcast by State-owned TV channel Russia 24.
The channel did not say when the meeting took place.
The anchor quoted Peskov suggesting Shoigu was giving a report to the National Security Council on the military operation in Ukraine remotely.
Shoigu has kept a low profile in recent days despite having a leading role in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The independent investigative Russian outlet Agentstvo reported Wednesday that Shoigu was in poor health, citing anonymous sources in the ministry.
However, Peskov dodged questions on Thursday about the health of Shoigu.
“The Defense Minister has a lot on his plate at the moment,” he said when CNN asked about Shoigu’s reported absence.
“The special military operation is going on. Naturally, now is not exactly the time for media activity, this is quite understandable.”
The Kremlin spokesperson declined to disprove the report by Agentstvo when asked by CNN. “I can’t. You shouldn’t listen to the Agenstvo media outlet.
“Please address [these questions to] the Ministry of Defense.”
During a televised Security Council Meeting in Russia on March 11, Shoigu told Putin that its invasion of Ukraine was being carried out successfully, despite evidence to the contrary.
Western leaders said at the time that Russia’s military had encountered unplanned obstacles and resistance.
“All is going according to the plan, we report to you here every day this week,” Shoigu said.
He also claimed that the Russian army had received more than 16,000 applications from volunteers in the Middle East wanting to join the war in Ukraine.
The defense minister also asked Putin for more weapons to arm the separatist regions in Ukraine’s Donbas.
