The Kremlin said Thursday that the Russian Minister of Defense had informed President Vladimir Putin of the evolution of the conflict in Ukraine, sweeping away the questions raised by the absence of public appearances by Sergei Shoigu for two weeks.
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During a meeting of the Russian Security Council, Mr. “Shoigu reported on the progress of the special military operation,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian agencies.
Earlier, the latter had, in a briefing with the press, dismissed media speculation about the state of health of the minister, who has not made a public appearance for about two weeks.
“The Minister of Defense has a lot to do right now (…) it’s not really the time to do media activity,” he said.
In the evening, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced a telephone conversation between Sergei Shoigu and his Armenian counterpart Suren Papikian.
The two men “discussed the current situation in the region and the areas where Russian peacekeeping forces in Nagorny Karabakh are carrying out their tasks,” the ministry said.
Sergei Shoigu is usually a familiar face on television screens. He and Vladimir Putin regularly stage trips to the Siberian taiga, driving all-terrain vehicles, drinking tea or picking mushrooms.