Vladimir Putin humbled in public as schoolgirl, 11, rips into Russian failures to his face

The young girl had already lost her father, 36-year-old Vladimir Pimenov, when he was killed last year while fighting in the Donetsk region.

He was awarded the Order of Courage.

Although she did not mention this to Mr Putin during their meeting in the Red Square in Moscow, she pleaded with him to help rescue her wounded uncle, 46, from the war.

Speaking to the President who was at the time surrounded by religious leaders, she said: "My uncle is at the front now. He was wounded in the arm, he was in hospital.

"They're not treating him at all, and now they are sending him back on a mission. I would like him to be transferred to a good hospital in Russia."

Mr Putin responded: "We'll definitely find him, all right."

Kira, from Siberia, did not let the matter go, reiterating his name Anton Fisyura to the leader.

Mr Putin, seemingly becoming uncomfortable with the interaction, said: "Certainly. Thank you for remembering him."

He then kissed her on the head before quickly moving on.

Kira's uncle, Mr Fisyura, has two sons, aged nine and 18.

The young schoolgirl later said she has two other uncles also fighting in the war.

She gave Mr Putin a Cheburashka, a Soviet-era toy, which she had made.

Kira said: "I [also] knitted the Cheburashka toy for my uncle Anton, then for uncle Vanya and uncle Yura, who are now defending the motherland.

"My toys will definitely bring them luck."

Kira has one sister, seven-year-old Anastasia, and her mother Viktoria Pimenova works as a lawyer for the Committee of Families of Warriors of the Fatherland.

Soldiers like Kira's uncle being sent back to the frontlines having received minimal or no medical care has been common in Mr Putin's war in Ukraine.

According to the Ministry of Defence, more than one million Russian soldiers have been killed or injured since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.