President Vladimir Putin is "alive and well" and, contrary to rumors, isn't suffering from any major injuries, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said.
"It's nothing serious. Everybody has some minor problems that they have to deal with," Medvedev told local media on an official visit to Finland, Interfax reported late Tuesday.
"Thank God he's alright," he said.
Speculation about Putin's health has swirled since early September, when the Russian leader was seen limping and bracing himself at a forum in Vladivostok.
Putin has also postponed visits to Pakistan, Turkey and Turkmenistan in recent weeks and spent an unusually large amount of time working from his Novo-Ogaryovo residence west of Moscow.
Last month, the Vedomosti daily reported that the 60-year-old Putin was suffering from an exacerbated back injury, which flared up after a highly publicized hang-glider flight in September.
Putin's spokesman has said the president is suffering from a pulled muscle, a "normal sports injury."
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