VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
The journalists worked magnificently and displayed tact and professionalism. I was extremely pleased. Incidentally, radio audiences think the question about snow was the best. Mr Putin said it would snow when God willed it. Mr Putin discussed high-priority issues and talked about the things he knows. And he knows a lot. He gave honest answers. There was little populism, another highly positive aspect.
Vladimir Putin's first live broadcast as Prime Minister lasted 3 hours and 8 minutes. The Prime Minister said 787 sentences made up of 13,171 words and 74,402 letters to answer the questions asked by ordinary Russians. In 2007, when he answered the public's questions as President, he was somewhat more talkative, uttering 14,433 words made up of 82,564 letters in 3 hours and 5 minutes.
At his live televised question-and-answer session, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said labour quotas for foreign workers in Russia should be halved in 2009 amid the ongoing global financial crisis. "Considering the serious situation on the labour market, I think it reasonable to cut the quotas submitted by the regions by at least 50%," Putin said during the session.
Russia may reduce its gas supplies to Ukraine if Kiev fails to sign a long-term agreement on 3-year transition to market prices, or begins siphoning off transit gas going through its territory to other countries in Europe. Ukraine's Naftogaz, which owes Rosukrenergo over $2 billion, does not have enough money even for the first installment of $550 million. Meanwhile, Ukraine has a four-month gas reserve in underground storage.
Yesterday Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin held a live question-and-answer session with the public. Kommersant special correspondent Andrei Kolesnikov, who hasn't missed a single live session of President Putin, believes that yesterday Mr Putin tried his best to show that the things which are the Prime Minister's should be rendered to the Prime Minister. Mr Putin was almost always in control.
Yesterday, far from the number of people who wanted to address Prime Minister Vladimir Putin were able to do so. Media sources said the unasked questions mostly mirrored those that were answered by Mr Putin. The Prime Minister discussed the financial crisis, housing issues, social security and domestic and foreign policies.
Prices of WTI crude fell below $44 per barrel yesterday, while Urals crude plunged to below $41. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said the oil companies' losses per metric ton of exports totalled $68, and promised to help them out.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said that the state's participation in the large-scale purchase of big business capital was not ruled out. This might become necessary if the measures being taken fail "to bring the state's money to those who need it," he said.
Those television viewers who did not see Vladimir Putin's question-and-answer session from the very start might have thought that they had gone back a year. It all looked like the national leader was answering questions from people who had elected him. There was not a hint that he has changed his position. Only those who saw the session to the end finally heard that there exists President Dmitry Medvedev.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin made only one reference to President Dmitry Medvedev during his three hour question and answer session. Many questions from the audience concerned presidential competences-foreign policy, hostilities and military reform. Mr Putin does not rule out his return to presidency in 2012.
