Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took to social media to dispel disinformation that he's lost control of the county after falling ill, making him the latest world leader to respond to potentially destabilizing rumors about their health.
Appearing healthy in an Instagram video posted Thursday, Zelensky blamed Russia for another cyberattack against Ukraine, this time, he said, for spreading "fake news" that he was hospitalized and required intensive care.
Ukrainian officials have previously pushed back against ongoing Russian disinformation campaigns. Now, Zelensky joins heads of state in the U.S., China and Russia who've been subjected to reports of ill health in possible efforts to sew doubt over each leader's fitness for office.
"Anyways, I am in the office," Zelensky said in the video, reported state-run news agency Ukrinform. "I have never felt as strong as I am now. And bad news for all of you who spread such fake news. I am not alone, there are 40 million of us."
Ukraine's State Special Communications Service said in a Telegram post Thursday that "cybercriminals" hacked into Ukrainian radio stations to spread false information that the head of the country's parliament had stepped in to lead the country after an infirmed Zelensky couldn't do the job.
TAVR Media, a Ukrainian broadcaster targeted by the attack, said in a Facebook post that the claims about Zelensky's health do "not correspond to reality," and the company was working to resolve the issue.
Wearing an olive green military T-shirt, the type he's worn since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February, Zelensky appeared against a backdrop of an official-looking office in the video. Zelensky concluded the video by saying, "with all due respect to old age, 44 is not 70."
Zelensky, 44, was likely referencing Russian President Vladimir Putin, 69, who has also been the target of reports of ill health.
Speculation and rumors about the Russian leader's health have swirled for years, but have intensified since Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine. Newsweek reported last month that a classified U.S. report emerged that Putin had undergone treatment in April for advanced cancer.
But on Thursday, Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov dismissed reports of Putin's failing health as "hearsay."
Similarly, British tabloids have reported that Chinese President Xi Jinping, a 69-year-old smoker, has been diagnosed with a brain aneurysm but won't undergo surgery because of the risks.
While running for president in 2019, Joe Biden, then 76, also faced speculation he was quietly dealing with serious health issues.
The same day Zelensky denied being sick, the White House revealed that Biden, now 79, tested positive for COVID-19 and was experiencing "very mild symptoms."
Newsweek has reached out to the Russian government for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Jake Thomas is a Newsweek night reporter based in Portland, Oregon. His focus is U.S. national politics, crime and public ... Read more
