Russian President Vladimir Putin celebrated his 74th birthday alone on October 7, with no gathering, party, or wider celebration, according to reports. The increasingly isolated leader spent the day with only a small group of people, and solely for work-related reasons.
Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov, speaking to Vesti's Pavel Zarubin, said Putin “devoted the greater part of the day to the international agenda, holding nearly a dozen telephone conversations with the heads of state of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Turkey, and Uzbekistan.”
Birthday greetings limited to family and close friends
Putin received birthday greetings from family and close friends only in the evening, but did not hold any form of gathering, party, or wider celebration at all. The move follows recent behaviour, as the Daily Star has previously reported on how isolated Putin has become.
Last month, reports indicated Putin had grown increasingly isolated as his full-scale invasion of Ukraine backfires, leaving him trapped in an “underground mansion” and terrified of his own inner circle turning on him. American political scientist Jason Smart says the Russian dictator has spent most of the past ten months hiding out in a massive bunker.
Fears of inner circle and Ukrainian strikes
Speaking to Australian news outlet ABC, Smart said: “I assume this bunker is very, very large - an underground mansion - but it's still a bomb shelter. He's not only scared of Ukrainian drones...He's also scared of his people on the inside.”
The Kremlin leader's lavish holiday homes, including his fairytale dacha complex in Valdai, have become increasingly unsafe due to long-range Ukrainian drone strikes. Despite protective aerial netting and missile defence systems surrounding his palatial retreats, staying above ground is reportedly now deemed too high-risk for the president.
Battlefield losses and domestic strain
Putin is believed to be staying underground as his forces suffer staggering losses on the frontlines. Estimates suggest up to 30,000 Russian troops are being killed, injured, or going missing every month.
Facing battlefield failure, the president reportedly believes that failing to achieve his objectives in Ukraine will result in him being executed. Sources indicate he privately fears he could “be hanged” if the conflict is lost.
With his military bogged down and a second forced mobilisation of over 500,000 civilians looming, Putin's popularity among ordinary Russians is rapidly souring. Western sanctions and persistent strikes on energy infrastructure have battered the domestic economy, sparking severe fuel shortages and long queues at petrol stations across the nation.
Once famed for posing shirtless on horseback to project a macho strongman image, the ageing leader is now dubbed “starik” - the old man - by people on the street.
