Putin cancels annual press conference in 2022

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not hold his annual press conference in 2022.

“As for the major press conference, yes, it will not take place before New Year’s Eve. At the same time, we are hoping that the president will still find a window to speak with reporters. He does it regularly, particularly on foreign trips,” Peskov said.

The spokesman also told journalists that many people in the Kremlin were down with flu, a decree in response to the Russian oil price cap would soon be adopted, while notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout’s decision to join the right-wing populist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia was his own personal decision.

Putin has been holding press conferences for journalists annually since 2001, the only exceptions were the years when Dmitry Medvedev was president. In November, RBC reported that the Kremlin was looking into possibly rescheduling the event to 2023.