Russia denies speculation Putin may step down for health reasons

The Kremlin has denied speculation that Vladimir Putin is on the brink of resigning, after a new law that would grant him lifetime immunity from prosecution sparked reports he was about to stand down for health reasons.

Mr Putin, who has already led the country for two decades, won the right to extend his rule until 2036 when Russians approved changes to the constitution in a referendum this summer.

But some analysts suggested the president had no intention of staying on for another 16 years, and that the changes simply allowed him to set his own timetable for departure rather than serve as a “lame duck” until his current term ends in 2024.

A raft of legislation considered by MPs this week added fuel to that speculation, including a law that would grant former presidents immunity from prosecution even after leaving office. Another law proposed they also be made senators for life.

Mr Putin’s spokesman, however, dismissed the rumours as “nonsense”, rubbishing a British tabloid report that the president was suffering from Parkinson’s disease and that his family had urged him to step down.

“The president is doing well,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday. Mr Putin, Russia’s longest-ruling leader since Stalin, has made several televised addresses since the start of the coronavirus pandemic but has rarely appeared in public.

The 68-year-old has held talks with officials via video-link from a windowless bunker, though some meetings have been conducted in person.

Over the course of his rule, the president has emphasised his rude health, with photo opportunities of topless horse rides, river walks and judo matches.

While he maintains approval ratings most Western leaders would envy, those numbers dropped to record lows this spring as a strict lockdown battered the already troubled Russian economy. 

Russia has proved reluctant to impose a second lockdown, as many Western European countries have done, despite record daily cases and bodies of coronavirus victims piling up in regional hospitals.

Instead, the Kremlin has largely distanced itself from the crisis, handing over decisions on restrictions to regional authorities.

Russian presidents are currently immune from prosecution until they retire, though the bill discussed by parliament this week would extend this protection for life unless overturned by a supermajority of MPs.

The bill is all but certain to be approved by the lower and upper houses of parliament, which are controlled by pro-Putin parties.

Observers have taken the measure as a sign that Mr Putin does not plan to cling on to power for life, even if he has no imminent plans to leave office.

One of Mr Putin’s first acts as president was to grant immunity to his predecessor, Boris Yeltsin, who faced questions over corruption connected to his time in power. His willingness to do this is seen as a key reason why Mr Yeltsin picked the former KGB chief to succeed him.

Since then, the Kremlin has promoted the “stability” offered by the Putin regime, and Russian officials have made hay out of electoral uncertainty in the US.

The knife-edge results in the presidential election pointed to “obvious shortcomings in the American electoral system,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

“This is partly due to the archaic nature of the relevant legislation and a lack of regulation in a number of fundamental points,” she said, adding that “the most important thing is that mass riots be avoided”.

Vyacheslav Volodin, the chairman of the Russian parliament, said the US had no right to claim its system was “a standard for democracy”.

“It’s a spectacle, nothing more than that,” he said.