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- 76 important questions: Putin summarized the results of 2024 and named goals for the new year
76 important questions: Putin summarized the results of 2024 and named goals for the new year
Russia is becoming a truly sovereign country, Vladimir Putin said on December 19 at his annual direct line combined with a large press conference. According to the results of the year, the country's GDP growth may reach 4%, and wages in real terms increased by 9%. In the context of the Ukrainian conflict, the Russian president once again expressed readiness for negotiations on the basis of the Istanbul agreements, and also said he would meet with US President-elect Donald Trump. "Results of the Year with Vladimir Putin" attracted widespread attention from many TV channels and media outlets around the world. Hundreds of journalists from both domestic and foreign media were present. Residents of the country also had an opportunity to ask questions to the President on that day. Appeals were accepted from December 8 until the end of the program. The total number of questions exceeded 2 million. The event lasted 4 hours and 27 minutes. During this time, the head of state answered 76 questions. The most important statements of Putin - in the material "Izvestia".
On the state of the economy
The direct line, the President traditionally began with economic indicators. According to the results of the year, the country's GDP growth can reach 4%, and for two years it amounted to about 8%. For comparison: in the USA - 5-6%, in Germany, the leading economy of the Eurozone, it is zero at all.
Russia's economy ranks first in Europe and fourth in the world in terms of purchasing power parity. China, the USA and India are ahead of it. Last year Russia overtook Germany and Japan. At the same time, the President expressed confidence that we "should not fall asleep and calm down", but, on the contrary, we need to maintain the momentum.
As of today, the Russian Federation has a record low unemployment rate of 2.3%. The growth of industry amounted to 4.4%, and that of processing industry - 8.1%. Agriculture remains one of the key sectors of the economy: its growth is 3% per year.
Inflation remains an alarming signal - about 9.2-9.3%. The authorities are now working on slowing down its rates. At the same time, wages have grown by 9% in real terms. "So on the whole it is a stable, I repeat, and reliable situation," Putin said.
"Russia has become much stronger over the previous two or three years. We are becoming a truly sovereign country: we depend little on anyone and are able to confidently stay on our feet in terms of the economy," the head of the Russian Federation added.
On the situation in Kursk Oblast
Russia is also defending its sovereignty within the framework of special operations: fierce battles with AFU units continue in Kursk region. The president admitted that at the moment there is already "the world's largest cemetery of NATO equipment" there.
During the direct line, the head of state found out that the fighters fighting in this region, who had not previously been in the zone of the SSO, do not receive payments as participants of the special operation (now they receive them as participants of the counter-terrorist operation). Putin called this fact an omission and assured that all due payments will be transferred - even retroactively.
The President did not name a timeframe for the end of hostilities in Kursk Oblast, but promised that everything will be restored: road network, utility infrastructure, schools, kindergartens. Certificates will also be issued for putting housing in order, and those who want to move will be helped with this. Already now about 108 billion rubles have been allocated for these purposes.
Time of heroes
In the Russian Federation, payments to fighters for serious injuries have been raised to 4 million rubles. Those who had previously received 3 million, the difference is being added up. The country has also established a development program for participants of the special military operation "Time of Heroes".
- I came up with this idea after meeting with the guys, mostly students, participants of the special military operation, in St. Petersburg, when I looked at them and thought - this is the future of the country. And that's how the idea to create such a platform came about," he said.
The selection is serious: 43 thousand applications were received for the first stage, and 83 people were chosen in the end. At the second stage, more than 15 thousand applications were received, and the collection has been extended for the next year.
Restoration of Donbass and Novorossiya
In Russia, a special program has been adopted for the restoration of new regions. In the next five or six years, 20 thousand objects are planned to be built there. Already now 21 thousand objects have been restored: 11 thousand at the expense of the federal budget, 10 thousand at the expense of the sponsoring regions.
- I want to look directly into the camera and thank the leaders and residents of these regions for this great help. This is a national task," emphasized Vladimir Putin.
The roads in the new regions are planned to be restored within the next three years. Russia will also build a ring road around the Sea of Azov, which is now fully on the territory of the country. One section of the highway is already ready: we are talking about a 40 km stretch between Taganrog and Mariupol.
Of course, the new regions still face difficulties related to social payments. The President, in particular, promised to solve the issue with the enrollment of pensions to their residents.
Peace talks on Ukraine
Vladimir Putin, while summarizing the results of the year, once again said that Russia allows a dialog on Ukraine without preconditions, but on the basis of the Istanbul agreements and realities on the ground. At the same time, Russia needs a long-term peace.
- We are ready, but it is necessary for the other side to be ready for negotiations and compromise," he said.
Politics is the art of compromise, but "the opposing side - in the literal and figurative sense of the word - refused," the president emphasized. He recalled that Moscow and Kiev had essentially reached agreements in Istanbul, but Ukraine was then instructed to "fight to the end." But Ukrainians willing to fight "will soon run out," the Russian head of state said.
Putin revealed his recent conversation with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Budapest offered Moscow a Christmas truce with Kiev.
- I did not refuse. I said, in principle, we should think about it, but you ask them. He asked. The next day the head of the regime said that there would be no truce, no exchange of prisoners," the president said, noting that Moscow had agreed to peace proposals at least three times.
Perhaps Donald Trump, who will return to the White House on January 20, can play a constructive role in resolving the conflict.
- Well, first of all, I don't know when we will meet with him. Because he's not saying anything about it. I haven't talked to him at all in over four years. And I'm ready for that, of course, at any time. I will be ready for the meeting as well," Putin told an NBC reporter when asked about a possible meeting with Trump.
"Oreshnik is a technological duel
So far, the Ukrainian conflict, instead of cooling down, has moved into a new phase of escalation - especially after the West allowed them to pound their long-range weapons deep into Russian territory. Russia has responded to such strikes by using its newest weapon - the Oreshnik medium-range ballistic missile.
The West continues to call it a modernization of an old Soviet weapon that is easy to shoot down at the launch stage. But the president explained: now 24 new missiles are on NATO alert: in Romania - with an intercept range of 300 kilometers and a kill altitude of 80 to 250 kilometers and in Poland - with an intercept range of 1,000 kilometers and an altitude of 500 kilometers, while "Oreshnik" is capable of flying up to 5,500 kilometers.
- There is no chance to shoot down these missiles. Well, if the Western experts you mentioned think so, let them offer [Russia and its U.S. sponsors] <...> to conduct a high-tech duel of the 21st century. Let them determine some object to be hit ... say, in Kiev. They will concentrate all their air defense and missile defense forces there, and we will strike there with the Peanutnik. And we'll see what happens," Putin said.
According to him, the U.S. Patriot missile defense system is comparable to the Russian S-300 system, and THAAD - with S-400, although it is still weaker. It remains unclear whether the U.S. will hand over THAAD anti-missile systems to Ukraine.
- If the Americans decide to supply them, let them supply them," he said. - We will ask our guys in Ukraine to tell us what modern solutions are available there that are also valuable for us.
Patriot PRO
Putin added that he was speaking about "our guys" without irony, as Russia "has someone to talk to in Ukraine".
- There are many of our guys there who also dream together with us of ridding their country of the neo-Nazi regime," he emphasized.
The president also responded to a question about whether he would change his decision to start the SWO if there was a chance to go back to February 2022.
"What would I have thought about? About the fact that such a decision, which was made in early 2022, should have been made earlier - that's the first thing. And the second thing is that knowing this, we should have just started preparing for these events, including the SWO," Putin said.
Future of Russian gas transit
At the end of December, the contract on the transit of Russian gas through Ukrainian territory to Austria, Slovakia and Hungary expires. Back in the summer, Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kiev had no intention of extending it. Vladimir Putin said that Kiev had cut off gas supplies to European consumers, although it was "pecking at their hands".
- This [transit] contract will no longer exist, everything is clear, but, therefore, it is good, we will survive, Gazprom will survive it," the president pointed out.
At the same time, the head of state said that he had recently received information from special services about the detention of Ukrainian saboteurs with maps of gas energy facilities in Slovakia.
Crisis in the Middle East
The Syrian issue was also touched upon during the direct line. Recall that on December 8, representatives of the armed opposition established control over Damascus. The President of the Republic Bashar al-Assad decided to leave his post and leave the country, instructing to transfer power. Putin said that what happened in Syria is not a defeat for Russia.
"After all, we came to Syria ten years ago to ensure that a terrorist enclave like what we have seen in some other countries - say, Afghanistan - would not be created there. On the whole, we have achieved our goal," Putin said.
The president's statement that Russia has taken 4,000 Iranian fighters from Syria to Tehran was a revelation. Speaking about the future of the Russian military presence in the republic, the president said that Moscow will decide this issue based on how relations with the political forces that will control the situation in this country will develop. Putin emphasized that Russia has already offered its partners to use bases in Khmeimim and Tartus to deliver humanitarian aid to Syria.
Demographic problems
As for the domestic political agenda, part of the questions concerned the demographic situation in the country. Russia recognizes that the declining birth rate is a serious problem. Vladimir Putin also noted that the number of women of childbearing age in Russia has decreased by 30%.
- What are we doing to improve the situation? A whole program has been created. We do it all the time, these tools are being improved. It works differently in different years. Well, first of all, unified benefits for families with children. It works effectively. We pay this allowance from a woman's pregnancy until the child reaches the age of 18, that is, 17 years. More than 10 million children already receive this benefit. And about 320 thousand pregnant women," he said.
Since February 1 this year, the maternity capital has been indexed at the level of actual inflation in 2023 - by 7.5%. Now the amount of payments for the second child is: 833 thousand rubles - (if the first child was born before 2020, that is, previously the family did not have the right to maternity capital) and 202 thousand rubles - if the family previously received a payment for the first child.
- We are keeping the family mortgage at 6%," said Vladimir Putin. - We pay Br450 thousand to families with a third child to repay the mortgage. We are developing the entire system related to medicine, childhood, maternity and will continue to do all this.
In addition, the Russian authorities intend to continue supporting preferential housing programs. The President emphasized that there should be no limits for family, rural and IT mortgages, calling it an outrage when people cannot get the service they are entitled to.
- I was promised, and I will check the fulfillment of that promise, that there will be no limits," he added.
Migration issues
The migration issue in Russia is acute and sensitive, Putin said. According to him, in order to reduce the number of migrants it is necessary to increase labor productivity. At the same time, foreign workers should be trained together with partner countries, familiarizing them with Russian culture and laws.
- There is a lot of discussion about whether we should create a separate department [for migration issues], as we once had one, or whether we should keep it within the Interior Ministry. I believe that today we need to strengthen this component, this work within the Ministry of Internal Affairs," the president said.
Russia is interested in attracting highly qualified specialists, including from among compatriots abroad.
On a personal level
Asked which of the already departed politicians Putin would like to talk to, he named former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, former French President Jacques Chirac and former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. According to him, Kohl came to visit him more than once already after his resignation. Putin described Chirac as an encyclopedist who knew the answer to every question and had his own opinion on everything. Berlusconi, as the head of state said, was grasping and warm in communication.
Now the Russian president has warm relations with the heads of China and India, but he emphasized that he would like to see more often his relatives and friends, including those from his childhood.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl during their meeting in Novo-Ogaryovo, February 2, 2006.
The Russian president also answered the global question: what is Russia to him?
"When I look at the successes, achievements of our people - athletes, scientists - I look and rejoice at it as I would rejoice at the successes of my family members, without any exaggeration, I look and rejoice as if they were my close people. I look at Russia as a family," the president said.
He considers it a great honor that the citizens have entrusted him with running the country again.
