Putin looks seriously miffed after he’s silenced for 34 seconds during speech
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Vladimir Putin was silenced for 34 seconds as he started a major speech to world leaders in an apparent microphone blunder.
The Russian dictator looked visibly annoyed as his microphone failed to work at the International Forum on Peace and Trust session in Turkmenistan’s capital, Ashgabat.
Following applause, Putin, 73, tried several times to start his speech but realised no one could hear him.
The despot looked around helplessly for assistance to end his microphone issue, before finally having the switch turned back on.
A total of 16 heads of state and government – including leaders from NATO states – watched as Putin struggled in vain to be heard.
Finally, a flunky approached Putin and showed him how to flick a switch to turn on his microphone.
‘Thank you,’ he said curtly before starting his speech.
The Kremlin ruler was mocked online for the blunder, with Azerbaijan outlet Minval observing: ‘Putin couldn’t work his microphone, he pressed the wrong button and spoke without sound for almost a minute.’
A Ukrainian outlet said: ‘He got what he deserved – Putin has no business addressing a peace forum after killing hundreds of thousands in the war.’
News outlet ChTD pointed out: ‘Nothing unusual, Putin in Ashgabat spoke for half a minute without sound until they turned on the microphone button for him.
‘The same Putin who regularly shows foreign leaders how to turn on headphones with simultaneous translation, which the Kremlin propaganda loves to talk about, comparing the advanced Kremlin host with his clueless guests.’
Among the guests Putin was addressing were NATO state leaders Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, president of Turkey, and Viktor Orbán, premier of Hungary.
Putin is on a two-day visit to Turkmenistan, where he is scheduled to hold talks with the leaders of Iraq and Iran.
The Russian ruler flew in his Aurus limousine to drive around the dusty streets of the Turkmen capital.
Putin’s ‘peace summit’ comes amid sobering war warnings
Britain is ‘on a war footing’ as a bloodbath is knocking on Europe’s door, the UK’s armed forces minister said yesterday.
The Army minister, Al Carns, said the country is close to a conflict and that the ‘shadow of war was at Europe’s door.’
His warning comes after Nato’s general secretary, Mark Rutte, urged all member countries, including Britain, to boost their defence efforts to counter Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
The Nato leader said the alliance is ‘Russia’s next target,’ but he fears ‘too many are quietly complacent.’
He used the opportunity to tell the 32 Nato member states to increase defence spending and weapons production to prevent a war on scale ‘our grandparents and great-grandparents endured.’
Speaking at the launch of a new Military Intelligence Services organisation, Carns said: ‘The shadow of war is knocking on Europe’s door and that war could be bigger and bloodier than what we have experienced in recent times.’
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