By Andrew Osborn MOSCOW, May 12 (Reuters) - The Kremlin has released a video of Vladimir Putin driving in Moscow and meeting an old school teacher in a hotel lobby, after Western media outlets cited a European intelligence report as saying the Russian president spent weeks holed up in bunkers.

Russia and Ukraine see little chance of reviving US-brokered peace talks, even after the end of the war in the Middle East, the Financial Times (FT) has learned from sources familiar with the positions of both sides.

The Russian strongman has dramatically ramped up security, including living in fortified bunkers, amid fears of a coup by 'elites.'

After Russia hosted a scaled back Victory Day parade, focus turned to Putin’s suggestion the ongoing war was “coming to an end.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday voiced confidence of victory in Ukraine as he oversaw a military parade on Red Square commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II — a show that didn't include heavy weapons for the first time in nearly two decades.

Vladimir Putin ‘stages dressed-down encounter with public’ in bizarre video - Putin released footage of the ‘chance’ meeting just days after it was claimed he was hiding in underground bunkers, detached from civilian affairs,

Vladimir Putin met his former teacher, sparking discussion of body double rumours. The state media-staged encounter aimed to reinforce Putin's image as firmly in control.

Aging, allegedly ailing Vladimir Putin has been mocked over his puffy, strangely altered face after the fearful, paranoid Russian dictator made a rare public appearance in Moscow over the weekend. The swollen-cheeked 73-year-old despot was spotted at an unusually quiet Victory Day parade to mark the 81st anniversary of the Soviet Union’s defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.