FT: Putin Admitted To "Drug Addiction" In A Private Conversation
14- 25.10.2026, 6:00
- 20,246
The Kremlin dictator spoke confidentially with a former Stasi agent.
Kremlin dictator Vladimir Putin called power a “drug” during a meeting with former Stasi agent Matthias Warnig in late 2022. This is reported in an investigation by Financial Times investigation into secret negotiations between the White House and the Kremlin following the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.
According to the publication, the meeting took place in the Kremlin. Putin and Varnig sat at opposite ends of a six-meter-long table. The Russian president expressed sympathy for his longtime acquaintance, who was facing the consequences of sanctions: Commerzbank had closed his account, his tax advisor had terminated their relationship, and his golf club had expelled him.
Putin also suggested that Varnig move his family to Russia, but Varnig declined. During the conversation, the German pointed out that the Russian leader’s strength had previously been his ability to establish personal connections with people, but that isolation had robbed him of this advantage. In response, Putin reportedly said, “Power is a drug.”
Putin had previously publicly denied any addiction to power. At a press conference in 2008, he stated that he had never been a dependent person and criticized politicians’ desire to hold office for life.
In January 2014, the Russian dictator also called a politician’s desire to cling to power at any cost dangerous and asserted that he had no intention of becoming a “perpetual president.” Yet Putin has been in power in Russia for more than 27 years. The 2020 constitutional amendments allow him to remain in the presidency until 2036.
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