Putin cancels year-end news conference as Ukraine unease grows

President Vladimir Putin will not hold his traditional televised year-end news conference this month, the Kremlin said on Monday, 10 months into Russia’s stuttering invasion of Ukraine.

The event is a staple of Putin’s calendar, giving him the chance to showcase his command of issues and his stamina as he sits alone on a stage in a large auditorium for a question-and-answer session with reporters that can last more than four hours.

But the war, which began on February 24, has not gone well for Putin. His forces were beaten back from the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on, and have suffered major battlefield setbacks in the east and south of Ukraine.

In a highly unusual move, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov was asked in a call with reporters whether a date had been set for this year's “big news conference”, and replied: “No, there won’t be one before the new year.”

In a highly unusual move, Peskov said the Kremlin hoped the meeting with Russian media outlets would now take place on an unspecified date in 2023.

He said Putin would find other ways to communicate with journalists, noting that he had held other news conferences, including on his trips abroad.

Last Friday, Putin answered questions from reporters during a visit to the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek.

Last year’s event took place on December 23, almost exactly two months before the invasion began, as the Kremlin was denying Ukrainian and US accusations that tens of thousands of Russian troops massing near the border presaged an invasion.

Putin used the occasion to say Russia wanted to avoid conflict with Ukraine and the West, but needed an “immediate” response from the US and its allies to its demands for security guarantees.

Reuters