Moment Russian defence minister grimaces in ache and mutters ‘f***ing moron’ as thriller delegate treads on his foot throughout Putin speech
The hunt is on for a man who heavily stood on the foot of Russia‘s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov as he sat behind his boss Vladimir Putin at a major summit this week – with observers joking he may have been a ‘Ukrainian spy’.
A video feed caught the moment a mystery passing delegate at the BRICS summit in Kazan trod on the foot of the Kremlin’s 74-year-old top diplomat, clearly inflicting considerable pain.
Lavrov grimaced and puffed out his cheeks as he turned to look at the passing figure, seeking to identify them, but the man quickly hustled out of shot as Putin’s foreign affairs advisor was seen smirking at the foreign minister’s misfortune.
Some observers believed Lavrov muttered a distinctly undiplomatic outburst behind Putin’s back as he was caught on the foot.
‘****ing morons,’ was one interpretation.
It is a phrase allegedly used previously by Lavrov, one of the world’s longest-serving foreign ministers, in office for 20 years.
The hunt is on for a man who heavily stood on the foot of Russia ‘s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov
A video feed caught the moment a mystery passing delegate at the BRICS summit in Kazan trod on the foot of the Kremlin’s 74-year-old top diplomat, clearly inflicting considerable pain
Lavrov was clearly in considerable pain and appeared to curse at the individual
Lavrov grimaced and puffed out his cheeks
Initially, it was thought he had been spiked by the stiletto of a female delegate at the showpiece BRICS summit, hosted by Putin.
But it later appeared it may have been a weighty male wearing a national costume – including blue and yellow – who trod heavily on Lavrov.
‘Hopefully it was a Ukrainian spy at this Putin diplo-fest,’ said one commenter.
‘Or at least a supporter.’
Certainly, the culprit wore the blue and yellow of the Ukrainian flag among the colours of their clothing – but Ukraine is not a member of the BRICS alliance.
The BRICS group is an intergovernmental organisation comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and other countries including Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Critics say Putin is looking to leverage BRICS as a tool to undermine the West and gather supporters amid his ongoing war in Ukraine and the bite of economic sanctions.
But the summit in Kazan failed to back him on any statement to justify his catastrophic war, nor did national leaders support his audacious attempt to create a new currency rivalling the US dollar.
Officials, including South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa (R), Russian President Vladimir Putin (C) and China’s President Xi Jinping (L), attend a plenary session in the outreach/BRICS Plus format at the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, 24 October 2024. The BRICS summit takes place from 22 to 24 October
Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) speaks with Chinese President Xi Jinping (2-L) as other participants in the outreach/BRICS Plus format meeting pose for a family photo during the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, 24 October 2024
This handout picture provided by the Palestinian Authority’s press office (PPO) shows Russian President Vladimir Putin and participants in the outreach/BRICS Plus format meeting posing for a family photo during the BRICS summit in Kazan on October 24
Presiding over the closing session at the BRICS summit, Putin praised the bloc’s role as a counterbalance to what he called the West’s ‘perverse methods’ and accused Western nations of using ‘illegal unilateral sanctions and manipulation’ to guard their power.
‘Such perverse methods and approaches – to put it bluntly – lead to the emergence of new conflicts and the aggravation of old disagreements,’ Putin said.
‘One example of this is Ukraine, which is being used to create critical threats to Russia’s security, while ignoring our vital interests, our just concerns, and the infringement of the rights of Russian-speaking people.’
In a joint declaration Wednesday, participants voiced concern about ‘the disruptive effect of unlawful unilateral coercive measures, including illegal sanctions’ and reiterated their commitment to enhancing financial cooperation within BRICS.
They noted the benefits of ‘faster, low-cost, more efficient, transparent, safe and inclusive cross-border payment instruments built upon the principle of minimizing trade barriers and non-discriminatory access.’
China’s President Xi Jinping has emphasized the bloc’s role in ensuring global security.
Xi noted that China and Brazil have put forward a peace plan for Ukraine and sought to rally broader international support for it. Ukraine has rejected the proposal.
‘We should promote the de-escalation of the situation as soon as possible and pave the way for a political settlement,’ Xi said Thursday.
