(ANSA) – ROME, JUL 21 – “There is no information on the fact that Vladimir Putin is unstable or in poor health” despite the growing speculation that the Russian president may be ill, perhaps with cancer or unstable of mind: CIA Director William Burns said at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado, according to reports from the BBC.
Burns said there is no evidence to suggest he has physical problems, joking amid audience laughter that he looked “all too sane.” Putin is “a great supporter of control, intimidation and revenge” – said Burns, specifying not to express formal intelligence judgments in the circumstance – and these traits have strengthened in the last decade leading to the thinning of his circle of advisers, “said the CIA chief.” He is convinced that his destiny as leader of Russia is to make the country a great power again. He believes the key to doing this is to recreate a sphere of influence in neighboring countries and he cannot do it without controlling Ukraine. “The CIA chief’s comments came as the US announced further supplies to Ukraine of weapons. long-range, and after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Russia’s military goal in Ukraine is no longer “just” the east and that Moscow’s strategy changed after the West supplied weapons long-range to Ukraine, such as the American Himars missiles. (ANSA).
breaking latest news © Copyright ANSA