Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu resurfaced in a short snippet of video footage aired by state media on Thursday after dropping out of public view for days during Russia's war in Ukraine.
Shoigu, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, was spotted on a split screen of top officials as Putin met his security council remotely in footage aired by Russia's RIA news agency.
The 66-year-old minister had not been seen for 12 days, some Russian media outlets said on Wednesday, prompting speculation about his whereabouts.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov played down that speculation on Thursday, saying that Shoigu had a lot on his plate and it was understandable he was not devoting a lot of time to media appearances.
"The defense minister has a lot on his mind right now. A special military operation is underway. Now is not really the time for media activity," Peskov told reporters.
Earlier, it was reported that the last time Shoigu appeared in the news was on March 11 when he spoke over the phone with his Turkish counterpart, Hulusi Akar.
On the same day, the Russian Ministry of Defense released a video showing Shoigu visiting the Mandryk Central Military Clinical Hospital, where he presented state awards to Russian officers who fought against the Ukrainian military.
On March 18, Shoigu was mentioned in a message on the Kremlin's website that said Putin had discussed "the progress of the special operation in Ukraine" with the permanent members of Russia's Security Council. According to the report, Shoigu was also present at the meeting. Video and photos from the meeting were not published.
On the same day, Russian state-funded broadcaster Channel One aired a story about Shoigu presenting awards. The story said that the event took place "today"; however, the picture in the story coincided with the video published on the website of the Ministry of Defense on March 11.
The latest news in Shoigu's profile on the website of the Ministry of Defense is also dated March 11.
Those close to Shoigu claimed Wednesday that he is unwell and has heart problems.