Matvienko opened the annual "Christmas Tree of Wishes" event in the Federation Council

Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko on December 17 together with First Deputy Chairmen of the SF Vladimir Yakushev and Andrei Yatskin, Deputy Chairmen of the SF Konstantin Kosachev and Inna Svyatenko opened the annual "Christmas Tree of Wishes" campaign.

"All senators consciously and with great joy take part in the "Christmas Tree of Wishes". <...> Participating in such actions, we ourselves get great joy from it, especially when we are talking about children who have health limitations or children from border regions: Kursk, Belgorod and other regions," Matvienko said.

The Chairwoman removed two balls from the Christmas tree. She will fulfill the wish of six-year-old Dima, who asked Santa Claus for a constructor, and 11-year-old Arseny from Kursk region, who lives in a temporary accommodation center in St. Petersburg and wished to receive a "smart" watch as a New Year present. The boy also asked to fulfill the wishes of five other children from Kursk region, who live together with him.

Matvienko emphasized that the main wish of the children from the border districts of Kursk region is for peace to return as soon as possible. The head of the Federation Council also assured that after the territories were cleared of militants, the authorities would do everything to restore every school, street and village as soon as possible and return everything to normal life.

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Earlier in the day, the head of the Russian Interior Ministry Vladimir Kolokoltsev took part in the all-Russian charity event "Christmas Tree of Wishes" and helped fulfill the dreams of a brother and sister from the Belgorod region. The girl loves traveling and dreamed of an interactive globe, and the boy asked Santa Claus for all of Alexander Volkov's books from the "Wizard of Emerald City" series. Also, the head of the UMVD gave the children sweets, and their mother - a bouquet of flowers.

The "Wishing Tree" charity event is a project of the Russian "Movement of the First" with the support of Rosmolodezh, which has been held since 2018 and lasts from mid-November to the end of February. Thanks to the campaign, children aged 3-17 who find themselves in a difficult life situation get the opportunity to fulfill a cherished wish or receive a gift for the New Year. In 2023, the Wishing Tree started on November 15 and runs until February 28, 2024.