Putin Drives Himself, Meets Childhood Teacher in Kremlin Video

The Kremlin released a video Monday evening showing President Vladimir Putin driving his own car in Moscow and greeting a former school teacher in a hotel lobby. The footage appears to be a visual rebuttal to Western media reports, citing an European intelligence assessment, that claimed the Russian leader had spent weeks sheltering in underground bunkers.

Those reports, whose source the Kremlin has questioned, alleged that security around Putin had been sharply increased and that he had directed the war in Ukraine from subterranean hideouts for weeks on end, fearing an assassination attempt or a coup. The reports surfaced in the period leading up to Putin’s annual appearance on May 9th at Red Square for the Victory Day parade, according to Reuters. Russian officials have dismissed the claims as nonsense.

Casual Encounter in Moscow

The video shows a relaxed Putin stopping his Russian-made SUV in central Moscow, accompanied by a security guard. He then enters the hotel lobby carrying a large bouquet of flowers to meet one of his former teachers. Putin, 73, dressed in jeans and a light jacket, embraced his former teacher Vera Gurevich, who kissed him on both cheeks and whispered something in his ear.

Putin, who began his schooling in what was then Leningrad in 1960, was then seen chatting about the weather with a passerby who entered the lobby with his family. Afterwards, he helped his former teacher into his car and took her to dinner at the Kremlin.

Kremlin Statement and Political Context

The Kremlin stated that Putin invited Gurevich to attend the annual military parade on Red Square and to spend a few days in Moscow enjoying a cultural program. Putin has served as either president or prime minister since 1999. Government polls indicate his popularity has declined in recent months but remains high. He is in the second year of his current term, which is set to end in 2030.