Angela Merkel writes in her memoir about the time Putin tried to intimidate her.
Putin was aware that Merkel feared dogs.
Vladimir Putin brought his Labrador dog to a meeting with Merkel in 2007.
Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel is the only female official who has served in the office of Federal Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, from 2005 to 2021. During her tenure, she met with various leaders across the world, although her meeting with Vladimir Putin in 2007 stands out for more personal reasons.
In her memoir Freedom: Memoirs 1954–2021, published on 26 November 2024, Angela Merkel wrote how Russian leader Putin tried to intimidate her by bringing his Labrador into the meeting, despite being aware of her fear of dogs.
Merkel shared that her intense fear of dogs rose from an early incident in her life when she was bitten by a dog in Uckermark, Germany, in 1995. She described that incident as a traumatic experience. Prior to her meeting with Putin, Merkel's advisor Christopher Heusgen had already shared details regarding her fear of dogs with Russian officials; the information was even shared with Russian politician Sergei Prichodko.
See Also:
Merkel stated that when Putin brought his Labrador, Konni, during a 2007 meeting in Sochi, Russia, the encounter with his dog came as quite a shock to the former chancellor. She shared that the dog was repeatedly approaching her, and despite being put in a difficult position, Merkel added that Putin appeared to be enjoying the situation. Merkel wrote, “I tried to ignore the dog, even though he was moving more or less right next to me. I interpreted Putin's facial expressions as meaning that he was enjoying the situation.”
She said that after the photographs were taken, she did not say a word to the Russian leader. This subtle move of using someone's fear against them was Putin’s way of asserting dominance over the other person. Merkel further said, “Was this a small demonstration of power? I just thought, stay calm, concentrate on the photographers, it will pass. When it was actually over, I did not say a word to Putin about it,” wrote Merkel in her memoir.
Almost a decade later, in 2016, Putin made a comment in a German newspaper regarding the incident. Putin said that he wanted to do something nice for her: “When I found out that she doesn’t like dogs, of course I apologized,” said Putin.
Angela Merkel had already established that Putin was well aware of her phobia, as he gave her a stuffed dog in Moscow a year prior to her meeting with the Russian leader in Sochi in 2007. She wrote in her memoir, referring to the stuffed toy power play, that “it did not bite.” [Rh/VS]