Putin： I have never been addicted to power.
On February 14th, Russian President Vladimir Putin held his last annual press conference in the Kremlin. Xinhua News Agency reporter Shen Bohan photo
The last annual large-scale press conference of Russian President Vladimir Putin was held in the Kremlin yesterday. More than 1300 journalists attended the reception, including about 200 foreign journalists. In nearly five hours, Putin answered 106 questions raised by 80 journalists, involving successors, domestic economy, relations with the West, Kosovo issue, and the US anti-missile system. Since yesterday coincided with Valentine’s Day, a female reporter from Russian Chanson Radio asked Putin at the meeting whether someone had given him a Valentine’s Day gift.
Putin replied: "No one has had time to give me a Valentine’s Day gift yet, because I have been preparing for the press conference since morning exercise this morning, and I came to this hall before talking to anyone. Of course, my wife has congratulated me on Valentine’s Day, but’ not willing’ to send me a Valentine’s Day gift. " The female reporter frankly wanted to give Putin a Valentine’s Day gift and asked what to do. Putin replied, "Please come here." A reporter from Kostroma asked Putin how his wife reacted when she learned that he would become the prime minister of the government. Putin replied: "She is not happy about it." A female reporter said that a few years ago, Putin’s wife, lyudmila, cried after learning that her husband would become president, because she thought Putin would have no time to enjoy family life.
Power | Support Medvedev
When answering a question about the third term of office, Putin said: "I have never had the desire to stay in the third term." He said, "Some people are addicted to cigarettes, some people are addicted to banned drugs, and some people are addicted to money. They say that the worst thing is power addiction. I have never been addicted to anything. " Putin believes that if you are lucky enough to work for the people in the position of national leader, it is a kind of luck in itself. He added that from the first day he took office, he decided that he would not violate the Constitution. Putin said: "I think I have received two gifts from the Russian people and served as two Russian presidents. But I can still work for our people in another position. " Putin stressed that if Medvedev is elected president and he becomes prime minister, there will be no problem in the division of authority between the president and the prime minister. He said that as long as we look at the Russian Constitution, we can see the scope of the functions and powers of the Prime Minister, who is only responsible for the country’s fiscal policy and economic development. He said that there would be no problem in his relationship with Medvedev, whether at work or in private. Putin also pointed out that Medvedev, as a deputy prime minister in charge of social issues, was familiar with government work. Medvedev’s upcoming speech in Krasnoyarsk can be regarded as a supplement to the Russian social and economic development plan for 2020.
In response to a reporter’s question "Why do you support Medvedev as president?" Putin said: "I believe that he will be a good president, a veritable and efficient leader." Putin said: "I believe in him and trust him. As I said at the United Russia Party Congress, you can proudly and confidently hand over the state management to such people. " Putin also said that he was not prepared to lead the United Russia Party after the expiration of his presidency. He believes that the Russian government’s decision-making is not based on the wishes of a person or a party, but on objective analysis and argumentation. Putin said that Russia’s future ruling foundation should be the general public, not a certain party.
Political achievements | Regret inflation Putin compared his eight-year tenure to a long time, but he admitted that nothing made him angry during his term of office. He said: "I can’t say that one thing in my work schedule makes me tired: sports, work and some entertainment activities are very tight." I like listening to pop music and classical music. Basically, my eight years of life is like a long trip, which is actually out of my normal personal life track. But if I have to say anything particularly angry during my tenure, I really can’t say it. " Summing up his eight-year presidency, he said: "I didn’t see any major failure. All the scheduled goals have been achieved and all the tasks have been completed. "
He admitted: "Maybe, some aspects can be done better." He cited, for example, the issue of inflation. He also said: "If we had taken more rapid and targeted actions at that time and used all our strength in this regard, not only mobilizing the economic field, but also mobilizing non-governmental organizations and political groups, then the inflation rate might have been lower." Putin pointed out that one of the main tasks of the government in 2008 and the next few years is to fight inflation. He said: "The problem is also well known. One of the main problems is that we failed to control the growth of inflation, which exceeded the expected 8.5% and reached 11.9%."
Wealth | Denying that he is rich Putin also said that the western media reports that he has huge wealth are nonsense. In response to a question from a western media reporter about the source of his property, he said: "As for all kinds of rumors about my own property, I have read several relevant reports. This is just nonsense, there is nothing to discuss, it is completely nonsense. " Putin also said that the most important wealth he has is the trust of Russians. "I like to experience life. I am rich because the Russian people have trusted me twice to lead this great country. I think this is my greatest wealth. "