It seems that almost everyone, including Putin's Western allies and sympathisers like MAGA Republicans, noticed a grin on Vladimir Putin's face during his tour to China when he suggested President Biden visit Moscow to have blintzes, the famous Russian pancakes.
In the same sarcastic speech, Vladimir Putin was being ironic about President Biden's earlier claim that Russia had been losing in Ukraine, suggesting that if Russia was really losing the war, why was America considering providing Ukraine with long-range missiles?
It appears that few people outside of Russia understood correctly the meaning behind Putin's whispers during that speech.
Russian criminal jargon and the language used by the Russian intelligence are very similar. Russian intelligence and criminal operatives enjoy hints, indirect suggestions, and twisted, hidden meanings.
Vladimir Putin did not invite President Biden'to go fishing with him as he occasionally invited ex Italian PM Berlusconi. He did not invite President Biden to explore Russia as far north as he invited President Clinton (according to the "The Back Channel" by William Burns).
Putin did not invite President Biden to come and enjoy any specialities of Russian cuisine. That was not his intention. This call of his had a deeper and hidden meaning.
Hostile invitation
Russian people love blintzes, but it is more than just a food. It is a tradition. They even have a Sunday dedicated to pancakes (Maslenitsa) dating back to pre-Christian times. The next pancake week, Maslenitsa, will be celebrated next March.
So why did Vladimir Putin, during his speech in Beijing, invite President Biden to come and eat blintzes in Moscow, knowing well that he would never come?
The answer lies in hidden and twisted meanings and hints, which only a Russian would understand, primarily those within Putin's inner circle. They definitely recognised the target audience of this game of symbols.
There is a controversy regarding the death of the famous Russian fable writer Ivan Krylov. The legends suggest that it could be either over-eating or pneumonia. The second one is more probable.
However, the typical Russian household believes Ivan Krylov died of overeating blintzes during the Maslenitsa festivities.
Russians often mention this unproven and undocumented cause of death, particularly during the Maslenitsa week.
Vladimir Putin was probably referring to a parallel between President Biden and Ivan Krylov.
In Russian jargon, overfeeding someone with blintzes or forest mushrooms has a different meaning. It means to cause someone's death.
Is Putin's entourage also invited to pancakes?
Russian elites are following Putin's public statements, because these statements regularly contain significant messages. Hidden and open ones.
Therefore, the Russian elites could sum up the 2 statements made by Putin: President Biden's unreal view of war according to Putin and the second statement, which contained Putin's invitation to President Biden to come to Russia and eat blintzes.
It was not a real threat to President Biden and should not be considered as such. It was a message to the "boys" in Putin's entourage and the Russian elite.
Putin showed his gang that we, the Russians, are not afraid of President Biden, and ever more we can offer him blintzes.
The street gestures
Just like everyone else in Russia, Putin knows well this common controversy regarding the real cause of Ivan Krylov's death and knows that people from his inner circle are aware of it.
By making this daring public statement, Putin was trying to gear up enthusiasm among his people, who are already puzzled by Russia's poor performance but are still expecting him to come up with a miracle that will not only enable them to sustain their,, current catastrophic situation but will also allow them to regain their former extravagant lifestyle.
The invitation to President Biden was not even symbolic. It was a cruel joke addressed to people around Putin and those Russians capable of understanding the shrewd sarcasm in the statement on blintzes.
The street gesture of the Russian president also shows that he is no longer hoping for a miracle.
He has been bluffing and cheering his people because he needs their loyalty now more than ever to remain in power for as long as possible. That is why he tried very hard to present himself as a tough-guy in Beijing - the kind Russians remember from the time he was consolidating his rule and spreading fear.
