Putin's Russia

Putin holds his annual tightly controlled press conference

Russian President Vladimir Putin is currently holding his annual press conference. It is a tightly directed event with no real opportunity to ask critical questions.

It was noticeable from the start that the economy is what worries many Russians. Putin knows this and began by talking about inflation and rising prices, writes the BBC. The president offered his usual reassuring words, despite Western sanctions and the enormous war spending.

- The situation is generally normal and stable, the president said.

The press conference is broadcast by state-controlled television stations in all of Russia's eleven time zones.

After four and a half hours: Putin's press conference is over

For four hours and 31 minutes, Russian President Vladimir Putin held his annual press conference. That makes this year's press conference the second longest ever. The record year was 2013, when he spoke for four hours and 47 minutes.

The press conference is tightly controlled and is primarily an opportunity for Putin to portray himself as a strong leader who controls everything from grocery store prices to wars around the world, writes AP.

Just like last year, he spent much of the conference boasting about his successes in Ukraine. He also boasted about Russia’s new ballistic missile, the Oreshnik, saying it can outsmart the West’s high-tech air defense systems.

“Let them choose a target, possibly in Kyiv, place their air defense systems there, and we will strike with the Oreshnik. We’ll see what happens,” he said.