Putin will hand over control of the Russian government to Nikolai Patrushev, head of the Security Council of the Russian Federal Police, while he is incompetent during and after the process, according to a video from the mysterious Telegram channel “General SVR” on Saturday. The channel – which is said to be run by a former lieutenant general in Russia’s foreign intelligence service, known as “Viktor Mikhailovich”, said Putin had been told by doctors that he needed to undergo surgery. Expected surgery and recovery are expected to make Putin incapacitated for “a short time,” according to the unconfirmed report. Vladimir Putin will be incapacitated during and after the procedure. The Russian Presidential Press Service / Kremlin / Brochure via REUTERS Putin’s unusual public behavior has recently raised questions about his health.Kremlin “Putin is unlikely to agree to hand over power for a longer period of time,” the narrator of the video said, adding that control of the country would likely be in Patrushev’s hands for no more than two to three days. “I will say that this is the worst choice,” adds the narrator. “Patrushev is a pure villain. He is no better than Vladimir Putin. In addition, he is a more cunning, and I would say, more insidious man than Vladimir Putin. “If he comes to power, the problems of the Russians will multiply.” “Viktor Mikhailovich” implied that he and his allies “will make some efforts to prevent this from happening and I hope we can do it.” People climbing over the wreckage at the Azovstal steel plant, in Mariupol, in eastern Ukraine. Regiment of Azov Special Forces of the Ukrainian National Guard through APAzov Members of the regiment walk with civilians during UN-led evacuations from the extensive Azovstal steel plant, May 1, 2022. David Arakhamia / Azov Regents arrive by RETER at an evacuation site from Mariupol, including the Azovstal steel plant.Chris McGrath / Getty Images The insider claimed that Putin’s cancer was evolving, but darkly mocked that he did not want to give viewers “false hopes.” The 70-year-old Putin, whose sick appearance and uncharacteristic demeanor to the public have recently raised questions about his health, is rumored to be suffering from cancer and a number of other serious illnesses, including Parkinson’s disease. Putin’s suspected health problems come at a particularly inopportune time, with the war in Ukraine in its third month and Russia suffering heavy casualties on the battlefield. Putin will hand over control of the Russian government to Nikolai Patrushev © Aleksey Nikolskyi / Kremlin Pool / Planet Pix via ZUMA Press WireNikolai Patrushev heads the Russian Federal Security Council. SERGEI KARPUKHIN / POOL / AFP via Getty Images Putin is rumored to be suffering from cancer and a number of other serious illnesses. Mikhail Klimentyev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP In a Telegram post on Thursday, Patrushev reportedly had a two-hour “heart-to-heart” conversation with Putin. “We know that Putin signaled to Patrushev that he considered him practically his only trusted ally and friend in government,” the post said. “In addition, the president promised that if his health deteriorated, the real control of the country would be temporarily transferred to Patrushev.” In early April, writers behind the Telegram channel claimed that Putin’s doctors had recommended surgery later that month, but that did not happen. Internally displaced people sit on a bus after arriving from the front line of the city of Orikhiv, at the evacuation point in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, May 2, 2022. EPA / ROMAN PILIPEYA boy from Mariupol looks out of the broken windshield of his family car after arriving with His family at an evacuation point.Chris McGrath / Getty Images An elderly man looks out as he sits on a bus after arriving from the front line of the city of Orikhiv at the evacuation point in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, May 2, 2022.EPA / ROMAN PILIPEY The “General SVR” reports Putin’s alleged oncological diagnosis from at least November 2020, claiming that the Russian dictator is suffering from bowel cancer. Another Russian investigative news outlet, Proekt, claimed last month that Putin had visited dozens of top thyroid cancer surgeons at his Black Sea home. New questions were raised about Putin’s physical condition last month, when he was seen holding on tight to an office during a meeting with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied that Putin had any medical problems.
