Vladimir Putin faced humiliation today during his end-of-year press conference when questions about the ‘reality’ of Russia were displayed on screens.
The Russian president is currently speaking in Moscow, with ordinary people getting the chance to phone in questions along with those asked by journalists.
Citizens have been submitting questions for Putin for two weeks. State media said that as of Wednesday, about 2 million questions for Putin had been sent.
It also appeared that text-form questions had been submitted via SMS, and while Putin was not directly answering them, these flashed up on the screens mounted on walls in the hall where the Russian despot was speaking.
However, not all of these messages were in keeping with the overall message of the heavily choreographed, which is more about spectacle than scrutiny.
‘Why is your “reality” at odds with our lived reality?’ one message displayed on the screens around the room asked the Russian president.
Questions about the ‘reality’ of Russia were displayed during Vladimir Putin ‘s end-of-year press conference today in a humiliation for the Kremlin
‘Why is your ‘reality’ at odds with our lived reality?’ this message displayed on the screens around the room asked the Russian president as he delivered his annual press conference
Another query said: ‘When will the real Russia be the same as the one on TV?’, and another, albeit politely, questioned: ‘Hello. When will it be possible to move to the Russia which they tell us about on Channel One?’
Putin’s tactics in Ukraine were also interrogated by one message.
‘Can you win a war while being in ‘active defence’?’ the message asked.
Another drew attention to the rising prices of groceries in Russia.
‘Cucumbers cost 900 roubles per kilo, tomatoes 950 roubles. It costs me 1,500 roubles to make a salad. I won’t even mention fruit. Make the prices normal!’
Several other questions on the screens concerned gas and its rising cost, while one specifically targeted Russia’s state-owned energy company Gazprom.
‘We gave gas to China, we gave gas to Europe. When will there be Gas in Khakassia?’ one message said, asking about the Russian region in south Siberia.
Another asked angrily: ‘How long will Gazprom corruption be tolerated? In Spring, LPG (Liquefied petroleum gas) cost 16R/Litre. Now 34P. How did the price rise by 200%? Why is there a deficit in the country and caravans go to the West?’
‘Hello! Why is gas price rising in Novosibirsk? And the price of gasoline is not falling?’ another question posed to Putin asked.
Even as Putin walked into the hall to an enthusiastic round of applause, a message appeared behind him that read: ‘We live almost without electricity, our appeals have not changed anything, the only hope remains is in you.’
This question that appeared on a screen behind Putin asked: ‘Hello. When will it be possible to move to the Russia which they tell us about on Channel One?’
On the war in Ukraine, this question asked: ‘Can you win a war while being in ‘active defence’?’
Even as Putin walked into the hall to an enthusiastic round of applause, a message appeared behind him that read: ‘We live almost without electricity, our appeals have not changed anything, the only hope remains is in you’ (pictured)
Putin did not appear fazed by the messages, nor did he address them.
Instead, he spoke about his on-going invasion, saying that Moscow’s goals – ‘de-Nazification, de-militarisation and a neutral status’ of Ukraine – remain unchanged.
He spelled out those objectives the day he sent troops to Ukraine in February 2022.
‘De-Nazification’ refers from Russia’s allegations that the Ukrainian government is heavily influenced by radical nationalist and neo-Nazi groups. The claim is derided by Ukraine and the West.
Putin has also demanded that Ukraine remain neutral – and not join the NATO alliance. ‘There will be peace when we will achieve our goals,’ Putin said.
The Kremlin has since repeatedly said that the ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine will continue until those loosely defined goals are achieved.
Offering rare detail on Moscow’s operation, Putin said some 244,000 troops who were called up to fight in Ukraine are currently on the battlefield and dismissed the need for a second wave of mobilisation of reservists.
He did not given a total for the number of troops in Ukraine, where professional Russian military forces also fight.
In September 2022, Putin ordered a partial military call-up as he tried to boost his forces in Ukraine, sparking protests.
‘There is no need,’ for debilitation now, Putin said, because 1,500 men are being recruited into the Russian army every day across the country. He said, as of Wednesday evening, a total of 486,000 soldiers have signed a contract with the Russian military.
In addition to the fighting in Ukraine, the economy and social services are expected to be discussed at the news conference, Russian state journalists said.
Last year, Putin did not hold his usual call-in show with ordinary Russians or his traditional session with reporters.
In addition, his annual state-of-the-nation address was delayed until February of this year. His last news conference was in 2021 amid U.S warnings that Russia was on the brink of sending troops into Ukraine.
With the future of Western aid to Ukraine in doubt and another winter of fighting looming, neither side has managed to make significant battlefield gains recently.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky travelled to Washington on Tuesday and made an impassioned plea for more U. aid and weaponry.
Putin’s appearance is primarily aimed at a domestic audience and will be a chance for him to personally resolve the problems of ordinary Russian citizens and reinforce his grip on power ahead of the March 17 election.
But is is the first time Putin, who has heavily limited his interaction with foreign media, will face multiple questions from Western journalists since before the fighting in Ukraine began on February 24, 2022.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (centre) answers questions during his annual press conference with Russian federal, regional, and foreign media at the Gostiny Dvor forum hall
‘For the majority of people, this is their only hope and possibility of solving the most important problems,’ according to a state television news report on the Russia 1 channel.
In 2021, Putin called a citizen who asked about water quality in the city of Pskov in western Russia and personally assured him he would order the government and local officials to fix the problem.
Some Russian journalists, who lined up for hours in freezing temperatures to get into the venue, have donned traditional dress, including elaborate hats in order to catch Putin’s attention.
Many journalists also hold placards, prompting the Kremlin to limit the size of signs they can carry during the news conference, which often lasts about four hours.
