Vladimir Putin answered the most important and pressing questions of citizens
Vladimir Putin summed up the results of the year by combining a "Direct line" of communication with citizens and a large press conference with journalists into a single format. During the four-hour conversation, the president answered dozens of questions, most of which related to the economy, social policy and the course of hostilities in the SVO zone.
On Thursday, the 20th direct line with Russian President Vladimir Putin took place. This year it was combined with a press conference with journalists and was called "Results of the Year". The event lasted 4 hours, 4 minutes and 19 seconds, during which time the head of state answered 65 questions, as well as three questions from the screens.
At the very beginning of the event, the President called ensuring the sovereignty of the country his priority task. "I have said this many times, but it is not a sin to repeat it: for a country like Russia, the existence of our country without sovereignty is simply impossible, it simply will not exist. At least in the form in which it exists today and in which it existed for a thousand years," he said.
Economic success
A large block of questions related to the Russian economy. The head of state was asked what the ultimate strength of the state is. The President assured that "it is sufficient not only to feel confident, but also to move forward."
The stability of the financial system has surprised many both abroad and in Russia itself, Putin pointed out. Answering the question about what to be proud of in the economy, Putin referred to GDP growth. "3.5% is expected by the end of the year, this is a good indicator. This means that we played back the fall of last year, where, in my opinion, we had 2.1%. If there is 3.5% this year, it means that we have played back the decline and made a rather serious step forward," the president replied.
By the end of 2023, the average life expectancy in the country may reach 74 years, although in 2021 it was 70.06 years, the president said. This is the most important social indicator of the state's efforts both in the field of economics and in the field of social policy. At the same time, inflation has increased in the country, the president stated.
"7.5% is expected by the end of the year, maybe a little more – by 8%. But the Central Bank and the government are taking the necessary measures. We can talk more about this, I mean raising the key rate and some other measures that the Central Bank and the government are taking. And we assume that we will be able to return to the targets," Putin said.
At the same time, the unemployment rate has reached a historic low of 3%. "Yesterday, my colleagues and I were preparing for today's conversation, already 2.9%. This has never happened in the history of Russia. This is a very good integrated indicator of the state of the economy," he said.
"Shooting themselves in the foot"
The President also noted that the West, by limiting Russia's ability to use dollars and euros, is "shooting itself in the foot." The Head of State stressed that the more we use the national currency in settlements, the more it increases Russia's sovereignty and capabilities. At the same time, Moscow does not refuse to use Western currencies, but it began to have problems in settlements in dollars and euros.
According to Putin, in 2021, Russia used 87% of foreign currency – the dollar and the euro - in servicing exports, the share of the ruble was 11-13%, and the yuan was about 0.4%. "As of September this year, the picture is as follows: the ruble – 40%, the yuan – 33%, the combined use of the dollar and the euro – 24%," the president said. "It was 87%, it became 24%. Why did they do it? I repeat, they shot themselves in the foot," the Russian leader said.
Social obligations
The Head of State assured that the authorities manage to "fully fulfill their obligations to citizens." "Yes, somewhere it is not enough, somewhere you want more. But what the state promises publicly will be fulfilled," he said. At the same time, one of the key issues of the "Results of the Year" concerned food prices. In particular, for eggs .
"Vladimir Vladimirovich, take pity on pensioners, we don't get millions, put prices in order!" – that was the address to the president. The Head of State replied that the demand for the product has increased, but its production has not. He described the situation itself as a "malfunction of the government," apologized to the citizens and promised to improve the situation.
In general, according to Putin, the country's food security is fully ensured . The Head of State noted that this year the grain harvest in Russia will amount to 146 million tons, including about 5-6 million tons in new regions. However, on the issue of poultry meat and eggs, the Ministry of Agriculture deserves criticism.
The president also announced the abolition of the commission for pensioners for housing and communal services. In addition, Putin expects that the upcoming indexation of pensions in the amount of 7.5% will not be lower than inflation. At the same time, the indexation of pensions, as well as the increase in tariffs for housing and communal services, should be timely, Putin said, commenting on the issue of tariffs from the Novosibirsk region.
"We have indexed for previous years, most recently, in my opinion, in December 2022, by 10% of pensions. Then in the spring by more than 4% in terms of inflation, and from the beginning of this year there will be another indexation – 7.5%. And tariffs have not been raised since July last year, and it is planned to increase tariffs only in July 2024. That is, tariffs have not been raised for a year and a half. During this time, there will be three indexations of pensions, which in total will be more than 23%," Putin explained.
"Of course, everything needs to be done in a timely manner, and tariffs should rise in a timely manner, gently, and citizens' incomes should grow at a faster pace. But, I repeat once again, let's see what exactly, what is the ratio of these parameters in the Novosibirsk region. We will definitely do this, I promise," the president stressed .
The migration agenda was also in the spotlight at the press conference. The Russian President said that there are about 10 million migrants in the country now. According to him, it is worth solving the problems of the labor market not to the detriment of the indigenous population. He also named a number of measures that, in his opinion, would help resolve migration issues.
At the same time, visitors, according to the head of state, are obliged to respect and observe Russian laws and traditions. It is necessary to create "human conditions for these migrants." "In some schools, there are more migrant children than local ones. These issues need to be resolved in advance. This requires a special body, not only the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which would consider the problem in a complex," he noted.
In addition, the Russian president supported the idea of creating a special economic zone in Shebekino, which is often shelled by Ukraine. He asked the Government to make an appropriate proposal as soon as possible. "We need to save jobs there and ensure economic recovery in the near future," the president said.
Putin also mentioned the family mortgage, which expires next summer. "Of course, the government should proceed from the real possibilities of the federal budget. But I think it's better to think in the direction of extending this family mortgage," the Russian leader said.
In the context of the family, a question was asked on the topic of abortion. The Head of State stated: "As for the bans, we remember what the anti–alcohol campaign led to. We have seen an increase in surrogate use and an increase in the number of victims. Therefore, we need to act carefully here."
According to Putin, in order to increase the birth rate, it is necessary to restore order in women's clinics, maternity wards of regional hospitals, and also think about improving measures to support families with children.
ITS goals are becoming relevant
One of the first questions at the press conference was: "When will peace come?" The Head of State replied that "peace will be when we achieve our goals." At the same time, the goals themselves have not changed since February 2022, the president said.
"I will remind you what we talked about – the denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine, its neutral status," he said. The Head of State also stressed that Ukraine produces practically nothing, but receives a lot "for free."
"They bring everything for free, but the freebie may end," Putin said. He noted that since the beginning of the so–called Ukrainian counteroffensive, the Russian Armed Forces have destroyed 747 tanks, two thousand vehicles of various classes - this is the data for Wednesday evening.
According to the head of state, practically along the entire line of contact, "our forces, let's say modestly, are improving their position." The President also noted that "in many cities of Europe and the United States, a lot of people believe that we are doing everything right." "We are not afraid to fight for our national interests. We have a huge number of supporters in the world to protect our traditional values. Their number is multiplying," he stressed.
Putin also told how the Armed Forces of Ukraine are losing not just military personnel in Krynki on the left bank of the Dnieper, but the elite, assault troops, which, according to the head of state, is stupid and irresponsible on the part of Kiev. At the same time, the Russian forces have sanitary losses and amount to several people, he compared.
Not "mobs", but Heroes of Russia
The President was also asked if there were grounds in Russia for another wave of mobilization. Putin assured that there is no need for this. In addition, he pointed out that those who were called up as part of partial mobilization are doing well at the front.
"We called 300 thousand people then. By the way, at first there was a lot of irony, all sorts of laughs on this score. They stuck such a name to these people – "mobs". I remember it all perfectly. The guys are fighting great, just great. Fourteen Heroes of the Russian Federation from among the mobilized. I'm not talking about medals and orders of other dignity. In my opinion, 244 thousand are directly in the combat zone, in the zone of their own," Putin said.
"After that, we launched a broad campaign to attract people on a voluntary basis and planned to recruit 400 thousand by the end of the year. As of yesterday evening, 486 thousand were recruited," he said and added that fifteen hundred Russian men enlist in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation every day, the flow of those who want to defend their Homeland with weapons in their hands does not stop.
In general, Putin expressed confidence that Russia would win during a special military operation. Currently, there are 617 thousand people in the combat zone.
Equal conditions for all military personnel
All volunteers in the special operation zone should be placed in the same conditions as the rest of the military personnel in terms of support measures, Russian leader Vladimir Putin said . "I am sure the deputies of the State Duma will 100% support it. You just need to formulate it all correctly. We will definitely ensure that everyone is put in the same conditions. And everyone received the same support from the state," the head of state noted.
The President also stressed that the authorities are closely monitoring the situation with the supply of everything necessary to the front, the problem is being solved. "There is not always enough [help for fighters], everything does not always work out. I have already said that we still have a front line - do you know how many? – almost two thousand kilometers. And absolutely, not everything is delivered on time everywhere. But our own production is also growing, and [necessary things] are being bought privately abroad," Putin said .
He added that the state itself, the Ministry of Defense, and industry are working together to resolve the problem, thanks to this, various new systems are emerging in service, including in electronic warfare.
Putin also thanked the Russians who cordially relate to the needs of the front: over 10 billion rubles have been donated. In addition, the children sent over three million letters of support to the fighters. He noted that whole movements have been created in Russia to help military personnel. The state can do without this support, but it is impossible to stop people.
Separately, the conversation turned to employees of private military companies who face difficulties in obtaining guaranteed payments after returning home. The President said that now it is very difficult to restore even the list of personnel of these companies and divisions. But the rights of military personnel from the PMCs must be fully restored. According to him, this is a principled position.
Volunteers will also be equalized in rights
Equal rights should also apply to volunteers who work in new territories, the president said. "I will definitely make sure that all this is regulated!" – he stressed, commenting on the question from the DPR that volunteers coming to Donbass from other regions receive insurance, but natives of the republics do not.
Special attention was paid to the Defenders of the Fatherland Foundation. The Head of State highly appreciated his work and noted that "it works well – there are very good people there." He also proposed to expand the fund's control over the allocated funds, including funds that are directed to the rehabilitation of military personnel.
"I am in favor of increasing their (the fund's) rights in the field of control over how much is allocated, to whom it is allocated and what result the allocated funds bring, including rehabilitation funds. I will not go into details now, but I know that the deputies of the State Duma, after my visit to one of the branches of the Defenders of the Fatherland Foundation, are also dealing with this issue," the president said.
"They behave like de Gaulle, but in practice – Petain"
It is noteworthy that the topics of socio-economic and humanitarian character prevailed over the topics of foreign policy. Nevertheless, the question of normalizing relations with the European Union was also asked. The President recalled that "we did not spoil anything." According to him, it was the West that tried to push Moscow into the second or even third plan, neglecting its interests.
"Many European figures outwardly behave like General de Gaulle, who fought for the interests of France with arms in his hands. But in practice, they behave like Marshal Petain, who, although he was a hero of the First World War, became a collaborator in the Second and obeyed the will of the occupiers," Putin said.
He also pointed out that the West's decision to support the coup in Ukraine had led to serious consequences. "After all, Russians and Ukrainians are basically one people. And what is happening now is a huge tragedy, similar to the civil war between brothers, when brothers found themselves on different sides. But to a large extent they have nothing to do with it," the Russian leader complained.
"The whole south-east of Ukraine, it has always been pro-Russian, because these are historically Russian territories. What does Ukraine have to do with it? Neither Crimea nor the entire Black Sea region has anything to do with it at all. Odessa is generally a Russian city . We know about it. Everyone knows this well. No, they made up all sorts of historical nonsense," Putin said.
"And this unrestrained desire to crawl to our borders, capturing Ukraine in NATO, all this led to this tragedy. Plus the bloody events in Donbass for eight years. All this has led to the tragedy that we are currently experiencing. They forced us to take these actions," Putin stressed.
Later, a correspondent of one of the French media asked if Vladimir Putin planned to resume contacts with French leader Emmanuel Macron. To this, the head of state recalled that he and the French president had working, good relations, with a busy agenda. But at some point, Macron stopped cooperating. "We didn't stop, I didn't stop. He stopped that. If you are interested, please, we are ready," he said.
The moment when the president's press secretary Dmitry Peskov tried to give the floor to a journalist of The New York Times was noteworthy, but Putin first asked to provide a microphone to a correspondent of the Chinese Xinhua news agency.
The journalist asked about Russia's plans in the context of the BRICS presidency, and also asked about the potential for cooperation with Beijing. Putin recalled that trade turnover between Russia and China is growing. We are particularly pleased with the diversification of relations: infrastructure is being built together, countries are jointly developing technologies.
The President noted that a significant impetus to this was given during the visit of the Chinese President in March. The leaders agreed to develop relations in eight main areas. "Our friendship with China is not directed against any countries. It is aimed at benefiting ourselves. And Western countries are always friends against someone. We will monitor this," the head of state explained.
At the end of the event, Vladimir Putin not only joked sharply, but also seriously speculated about the past. According to him, if there had been an opportunity to go back to the past, he would have warned himself in 2000 against naivety and excessive credulity towards Western partners. He added that he would give himself a parting word to believe in the Russian people . "We must believe in the great Russian, the Russian people. This faith is the key to success, revival, formation and development of Russia," the President stressed at the end of the press conference.
Alyona Zadorozhnaya
