As the Kremlin’s war effort in Ukraine stalls, Vladimir Putin’s defence minister has vanished, citing “heart problems.”

According to reports in opposition media, Sergei Shoigu has not been seen in 12 days, and old footage or photographs of him have been shown on TV.

Shoigu, 66, was mentioned in a Kremlin website report on March 18 as having discussed “the progress of the special operation in Ukraine” with permanent members of the security council.

However, no videos or photographs were shown.

On the same day, state-run Channel One broadcast a storey about Shoigu presenting awards.

Nonetheless, an image used with the report was the same as it had been on March 11th.

He had been more visible and frequently quoted earlier in the war.

His circle said he was ill – with heart problems, according to a source close to the minister, according to investigative news outlet Agentstvo.

Shoigu is regarded as one of Putin’s most trusted and loyal allies.

However, tensions have emerged between him and other top army and security officials regarding the conduct of the war.

Ksenia, Shoigu’s 31-year-old daughter, was recently photographed with her baby in Ukrainian blue and yellow.

His sister Larisa Shoigu, 68, died of Covid in June of last year.

It comes as Putin, enraged, has launched a witch-hunt of his most trusted inner circle in search of the “guilty men” responsible for his war strategy’s failure.

The failure is regarded as one of the primary reasons for the elimination of several of his top generals and elite forces during the four weeks of combat.

Putin is said to be growing tired of his close ally and vacation buddy, Russia’s defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, who is in charge of the stalled military operation.

Long-time ally FSB security service head Alexander Bortnikov, who has been mentioned as a possible replacement for Putin in the event of a coup, is also under pressure, as is Valery Gerasimov, chief of the Russian general staff.

Igor Kostyukov, the Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, is another target of Putin’s rage.

“He is incandescent that US and UK intelligence appear to know the Russian army’s next moves all the time, starting with predicting the invasion before he was ready to acknowledge it,” a source said.

It comes as the Kremlin admits that over 10,000 Russian soldiers have been killed and thousands more have been injured in Ukraine.