Vladimir Putin addressed a summit of the BRICS countries on Tuesday — but not in his normal voice.
The Kremlin leader didn’t attend the gathering of leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa in Johannesburg, as he risked arrest under a war crimes indictment issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Instead, he sent a video message, telling the BRICS leaders that Russia would not return to the Black Sea grain deal until its conditions were met.
Bizarrely, the version of the video played to the summit in Johannesburg was dubbed by a voice actor who made the Kremlin chief sound like either a Hollywood villain, 1970s soul star Barry White, or a gangster being interviewed for a TV program whose voice had been dubbed to protect his identity.
In the original version of the video message, posted on the Kremlin website, Putin coughed several times as he began to read a prepared text. He said Russia would be prepared to return to the “so-called [grain] deal” if its conditions — previously stated to be hidden sanctions that make it difficult for banks and businesses to conduct food and fertilizer deals — are met.
No reason was given for Putin’s actual voice not being heard, but RIA, the state news agency, said: “Putin addressed the BRICS business council via video link. Not in his own voice.”