'Arrogant' Putin shows visible sign of 'regret' in rare press conference, expert warns
EXCLUSIVE: The Russian president cut an "energised and defiant" figure as speculation swirls around his health two years into his bloody invasion of Ukraine.
Vladimir Putin showed visible signs of "regret" and "discomfort" in his first news conference since the start of his invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking at a year-end news conference that offered him an opportunity to reinforce his grip on power, Putin gave some rare details on what Moscow calls its “special military operation”.
But it is not so much what he said but how he said it that betrayed how his war effort is really going, claims body language expert Judi James.
She explained: "Sucking his lips in, Putin performed a suggestion of regret as he spoke of what he saw as differences between Ukraine and Gaza.
"His lips pursed in a signal of defiance and his chin rose in a gesture of justification as he said: 'There is nothing like this in Ukraine.'"
The Russian president appeared to clam up when his military objectives came under closer scrutiny, however, James noted.
"Answering questions about Ukraine he showed visible signs of discomfort, which were unusual for the man normally known for his inscrutable body language performances," the body language expert explained.
"The subject of ‘private armies’ kicked off a series of sustained anxiety rituals. Claiming the ‘Ministry of Defense should not have allowed these gaps’ and referring to ‘Private military companies in Russia’ his body language suggested extreme discomfort."
In an apparent attempt to bat away growing speculation about his health, Putin appeared "energised and arrogant", James added.
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Putting on a brave face
During the press conference, Putin dismissed the need for a second wave of mobilisation of reservists to fight in Ukraine — a move that has been deeply unpopular.
He said there are some 617,000 Russian soldiers there, including around 244,000 troops who were called up to fight alongside professional military forces.
“There will be peace when we will achieve our goals,” the Russian autocrat said, repeating a frequent Kremlin line.
Putin, who has held power for nearly 24 years and announced last week he is running for reelection, was greeted with applause as he arrived in the hall in central Moscow.
He didn’t hold his traditional press conference last year after his military failed to take Kyiv and the Ukrainian army retook territory in the east and south of the country.
But with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy now forced to plead for more US aid, a stalling counteroffensive and reports of fracturing Western support for Kyiv, he decided to face the media once more — although the session is heavily choreographed and is more about spectacle than scrutiny.
This year, ordinary citizens had the chance to phone in questions along with those from journalists, and Russians have been submitting them for two weeks. It is the first time Putin, who has heavily limited his interaction with foreign media, has faced multiple questions from Western journalists since the fighting in Ukraine began.
