Video: Vladimir Putin drives car without wearing bulletproof vest days after Trump's assassination bid
Russian President Vladimir Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday (Jul 16) was seen driving a new car without wearing a bulletproof vest, which left many concerned about his safety after theassassination attempt on ex-US president Donald Trump.
People have raised concerns on social media forums regarding the safety of world leaders after Trump was hit in the ear by a gunman at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
The 71-year-old Putin was also seen almost causing a car crash as he apparently made a mistake whiledriving the Lada Aura car as he was trying to boost sales of the Russian-made vehicle. The video showed that Putin failed to indicate 'right'. Hence, the vehicle of his security team had to slow down to avoid a crash.
A video shared on social media showed the Russian president surrounded by a total of seven security guards reportedly on the M-11 highway, which connects Moscow and St Petersburg.
However, users noticed that Putin donned a white shirt, but was not wearing a bulletproof vest.
This comes after calls for Putin to cancel further trips abroad due to a possible assassination attempt, similar to that onTrump. A senior official from the Russian foreign ministry Maria Zakharova accused Ukraine of working on the assassination of Putin.
Putin was asked by reporters what he thought about the car, and Putin said he was quite satisfied with it.
While speaking during the event, Putin said that the Russian state-owned Avtodor company in charge of road construction and management is actively involved in rebuilding the transport infrastructure of Russia-controlled areas in Ukraine, including the Donbas, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.
Watch the video here:
Kremlin on Trump assassination bid
The Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to the attack on Trump, saying that Russia strongly condemned any violence in the context of politics.
The Kremlin "strongly condemns any example of violence in the context of political competition", Peskov said in a telephone press conference.
He expressed Russia's "condolences" to "the family of the victim killed in this attack" and wished those injured a speedy recovery.
Both Peskov and Russia's foreign ministry said the attack was predictable. "After numerous attempts to eliminate candidate Trump from the political arena using first all legal tools -- courts, prosecutors, attempts of political discrediting -- it is obvious to all outside observers that his life is in danger," Peskov said, adding however that "we do not at all believe that the attempt was organised by the current power".
(With inputs from agencies)