As expected, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke at the annual business conference of world leaders in South Africa on Tuesday. But this time, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke in a different tone. Putin spoke in Johannesburg through a recorded video at a summit of the economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS), where he discussed the business council’s concerns with an altered, deep voice. The voice, which is far lower than Putin’s normal tone, as if it was created by an AI voice changer, although it’s unknown why and how his voice was modified.
Putin, who appears to be speaking from his office at the Kremlin in Moscow in the video, did not attend the meeting in Johannesburg because he would have faced arrest. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued a global arrest order for Russian President Vladimir Putin for the kidnapping of Ukrainian children. South Africa is a member of the International Criminal Court and would have been required to arrest him. The 32-second clip of Putin’s distorted voice is part of a broader 15-minute video address shown to the BRICS audience on Tuesday. The little footage appears to be from the video’s commencement.
Putin reiterated Russia’s openness to return to the Black Sea grain deal with Ukraine provided certain conditions are met
The recorded video greeting on the Kremlin’s website features Putin’s usual voice, although he coughs multiple times at the start. According to a film posted by Russian state-run media agency TASS, Putin appeared via video link on Wednesday with his regular voice. Putin reiterated Russia’s openness to return to the Black Sea grain deal with Ukraine provided certain conditions are met in his speech on Tuesday. The agreement, which Russia abandoned last month, would have allowed Ukraine to ship vital grain goods out of the Black Sea without hindrance from Russian soldiers.
Putin used the important meeting in South Africa to accuse the West of instigating the crisis in Ukraine and to rally friends at a time when Russia is becoming increasingly isolated on the international scene. World leaders decided to expand the alliance on Wednesday. The BRICS meeting began on Tuesday and will conclude on Thursday.