Vladimir Putin: Interesting Facts and Questionable Stunts

A Nervous English Speaker

Photo: MIKHAIL KLIMENTYEV/AFP/Getty Images

Putin is well known for being fluent in German, as seen in his discussions with Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany. He became comfortable speaking German when he was stationed in Eastern Germany as a KGB agent. However, he is much less confident and almost nervous when he forced to speak English. Although he does have some conversations in English, for the most part, he avoids speaking English publicly. It wouldn’t be very much like Putin to not have confidence when speaking to the public.