‘Bodyguards collect all Putin’s feces during foreign trip’ | Abroad

In the extensive entourage of the Russian president when he leaves on a foreign mission, one person has the least appetizing task. One of the members of the Federal Security Service (FSB) is responsible for collecting all of Vladimir Putin’s excrement. That has been the case for years, reporters Regis Gente -author of two books about Russia- and Mikhail Rubin -who has been writing about Russia for years- write in the magazine. Paris Match.

For example, the two write about a visit to Saudi Arabia in October 2019, where a security agent had to collect the faeces and urine in bags that were sent to Moscow. But there were also testimonies of this during a visit to France in May 2017.

Rumors about health

Putin wants to prevent foreign powers from analyzing the matter. And that something can be inferred about his health. The story is not out of the blue, says freelance journalist Farida Rustamova, who used to work for BBC Russia. She refers on Twitter to an anecdote about a visit to Austria, in 2018, where Putin brought his own portable toilet for a visit to the Kunsthistorisches Museum.

An acquaintance of Putin told Rustamova that he has been doing so since he first came to power. The Russian president would be terrified that anyone could analyze his DNA. He usually also has his own thermos with him – even on the G20 he did not drink from the crystal glasses. If he does drink from a different cup or glass at an event, his bodyguards make sure that no one takes that cup with him. “Any body cell or fingerprint of the president is considered a state secret because the DNA could, for example, contain information about hereditary disorders or could be linked to possible illegitimate children,” the source said.

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