Vladimir Putin denies he tried to frighten Germany’s Angela Merkel with dog Koni

In her new memoir Freedom, Merkel shared that, knowing Putin occasionally brought his dog to meetings with foreign leaders, she had asked an aide the previous year to request that Koni not be present during her encounters with him, as she had a fear of dogs.

When they met in Moscow in 2006, Merkel said Putin honoured her request but gave her a large stuffed dog, joking that it didn’t bite. However, during their encounter in Sochi the following year, the large dog roamed the room and approached Merkel, who appeared visibly uncomfortable as she sat next to Putin in front of photographers and TV cameras.

Asked about the incident on Thursday, Putin denied knowing about Merkel’s fear of dogs and said he had later apologised to her.