Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has launched a full-scale war on Ukraine, is reportedly suffering from a brain disorder caused by dementia, Parkinson’s disease or ‘roid rage’ resulting from steroid treatment for cancer, UK's Daily Mail reported citing intelligence sources from Five Eyes.
The Five Eyes is an intelligence alliance comprising Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Intelligence officials in the Five Eyes believe there is a physiological explanation for Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine.
As per intelligence community, Putin has shown 'increasingly erratic behaviour’ with a bloated appearance in recent footage and the absurd distance during his meeting with guests at Kremlin.
The officials feel there has been an identifiable change in Russian President's decision-making over the past five years or so. "Those around him see a marked change in the cogency and clarity of what he says and how he perceives the world around him," the report said.
Earlier, UK's former foreign secretary Lord David Owen made somewhat similar observation and said Putin could be on anabolic steroids which can increase a person's aggression.
"I think his immunity is compromised, either by cortical steroids given him for some other ailment or he is on the steroids you give to people with body lifting and weightlifting," he told BBC Newsnight.
Referring to Russian annexation of Crimea, Owen said when Putin went for Crimea in 2014, he prepared the Russian public very carefully-for it and explained very carefully. "This time there was no consultation at all and even now, Russians are not being told this is an invasion. He is a changed man. He is acting out of character and is very aloof now," Owen said.
Former head of British secret service Sir Richard Dearlove recently said Putin is showing symptoms like 'loss of restraint'. “The best explanation, that we don’t know whether it’s correct or not, is that he may have Parkinson’s," he said.
