Putin almost causes a crash while driving a Lada to boost Russian car sales – with basic driving blunder
Russian leader Vladimir Putin was caught nearly causing a car crash after making a major driving error while driving a Lada in an attempt to boost car sales.
Dressed in a tight white shirt and without a bulletproof vest, 71-year-old Putin opened a new stretch of highway in the Tver region today before nearly causing a disaster on the road.
Footage of the moment shows the Russian president driving a black Lada Aura on the M-11 highway connecting Moscow and St Petersburg – Russia’s two largest cities – before turning left in an attempt to avoid the white tents ahead of him.
But the dictator blunders when he fails to turn his car to the right as he tries to re-enter, catching his security team in their pursuit vehicle nearly crashing into the back of the leader’s sedan.
Putin drove the Lada to boost car sales, but he bravely gave up his bulletproof vest just days after the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.
President Vladimir Putin was spotted in a black Lada Aura on the M-11 highway connecting Moscow and St. Petersburg, before turning left to apparently avoid a white obstacle surrounded by tents
The tyrannical leader then departs from the tent, his indicator still flashing to the left, as his security forces follow closely behind him.
But as he swerves to drive to the right side of the road, he forgets to signal, causing his security vehicle behind him to nearly crash into the back of his Lada.
The President manages to get in safely, avoiding a near collision with the larger car behind him
The highway cruise also marked his first appearance since the former US president was shot and his regime accused the US government of colluding in an attempt to assassinate the Kremlin dictator.
After the short ride in the Lada Aura, the president was seen outside the vehicle, surrounded by seven nervous-looking security guards.
As he got out of the car, one of his security guards handed him his jacket, but observers noted that there was no sign that the tie-less Putin was wearing a bulletproof vest, as had previously been claimed.
Another officer carried a black briefcase, likely a fold-out shield to protect the dictator from possible bullets before addressing the road workers.
Footage from the car during the drive shows the tyrannical president fiddling with his seatbelt before starting the engine and driving away.
From the window, his security guards can be seen following him in their own luxury car as he drives down the road under the bright sun.
Chatting with an employee of HNC, a leading company in the automation industry, and laughing, the Russian leader enjoys the smooth ride while keeping his eyes on the road.
Footage from inside the vehicle shows Putin driving along the highway wearing a white shirt with the top button open
He chatted with an HNC employee during the ride where he opened a new stretch of highway
The appearance comes after Putin faced fresh calls to halt foreign travel amid threats of a Trump-style assassination.
Maria Zakharova, a senior official at the Russian Foreign Ministry, accused Kiev of being directly involved in the murder of the 71-year-old Putin.
This followed statements by the head of Kiev’s military intelligence service, the GRU, over the weekend indicating that there had been unknown failed attempts to assassinate Putin.
‘She [assassination attempts] “Plans have been made, but as you can see, they have not been successful so far,” said Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov.
Zakharova claimed that “one of the leaders of the Kiev regime, Budanov, openly admitted that the Ukrainian intelligence service was preparing attempts to end the life of the Russian president.”
Putin’s own spokesman Dmitry Peskov had to respond, saying: “All threats to the Kiev regime are clear.
‘Therefore, the safety of the first person is [Putin] is guaranteed at the right level.’
Sergei Markov, a staunch pro-Kremlin military analyst, admitted: “Putin is the target.
‘And not just for the SBU [Ukrainian security service] and the [GRU]but also for the US and British intelligence agencies and dozens of other intelligence agencies around the world that are subordinate to them.
As he stepped out of the vehicle after the near-crash, Putin’s security team swarmed around him
One gave him a nice jacket, while the other carried a black briefcase – probably a fold-out shield to protect the dictator from possible bullets.
The president showed his rare lack of protective gear as he stepped out of the vehicle
Putin addressed highway construction workers after the opening of the new section of the M-11 highway in Russia
‘That is why I believe that Putin should not visit foreign countries at all, even friendly countries.
“Russia has not yet decided how to respond. And so far there is no response. And this only encourages the enemy to escalate.”
Putin has not commented directly on the shooting with Trump, but his spokesman indicated that the “atmosphere” in US politics created by the Biden administration was the cause of the shooting.
According to him, it was “clear” that Donald Trump’s “life was in danger” before the shooting.
“The atmosphere surrounding candidate Trump… has caused what America is experiencing today.”
The former US president was the target of an assassination attempt on Saturday night while delivering a speech at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Trump was shot in the ear by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks. Footage shows him clutching his bloodied face and ducking behind the lectern as his security guards form a wall of bodies around him and the shooter is taken out.
The injured Trump then stood up, raised his fist in the air and repeatedly yelled “fight” as he was escorted off the stage by suited Secret Service members.