Russian president Vladimir Putin It is said that he cut out the heart of a deer and gave it to former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
A close ally of Berlusconi, who died in June last year, said the incident occurred in 2013 when Putin took his Italian counterpart hunting near one of his dachas.
Fabrizio Cicchitto, a former senator from Berlusconi's Forza Italia party, told the Corriere della Sera newspaper on Sunday: “Vladimir showed me a violent nature that I had not imagined in such a kind and rational man.”
Putin and Berlusconi reportedly had a close relationship when they were leaders of their respective countries.
Berlusconi supported Putin even after the invasion of Russia Ukraine in 2022. When the former Italian leader died last year, Putin called him a “true friend.”
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Cicchitto claimed Berlusconi went hunting with Putin despite never having touched a gun before. Putin is said to have pointed to a deer and said to Berlusconi: 'That's yours. To shoot.”
Berlusconi refused to shoot, so Putin killed both deer. He then cut out the heart of one of the deer and had one of his associates give it to Berlusconi on a tray for a meal.
Cicchitto claims Berlusconi then hid behind a tree to vomit. Berlusconi called the incident a 'fighter's habit'.
Putin has used unusual psychological tricks in the past to intimidate other leaders.
Perhaps his most infamous stunt was his decision to bring a black Labrador to a meeting with former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who had a well-documented fear of dogs being attacked by a dog in her youth.
During the exchange, the dog Koni walked close to Merkel, who was visibly uncomfortable the entire time.
Merkel told reporters after the 2007 meeting: “I understand why he has to do this – to prove that he is a man.
“He is afraid of his own weakness. Russia has nothing, no successful politics or economics. All they have is this.”