Vladimir Putin cancels an important appointment on television. Now there is speculation in Russia about the reasons.
Moscow – In the midst of the Ukraine war, Russian President Vladimir Putin has canceled an important traditional appearance on TV. In the program Direct Line to Vladimir Putin, the ruler is usually asked questions from viewers on various topics once a year. Just recently, Putin's mind was described as "extremely irritable." Russia's war in Ukraine is said to be to blame for this.
According to the Russian newspaper Kommersant, the current situation in Ukraine is also the reason for the cancellation of the TV appearance. Thus, a source from the Kremlin said that it is better to wait for developments at the front against the troops of Volodymyr Zelensky. Nevertheless, the broadcast should be made up for at the end of the year. The news portal t-online has now reported that Putin could then use the show perfectly as an election campaign opportunity.
The head of the Kremlin has once again canceled the program "Direct line to Vladimir Putin." Last year, the TV show did not take place. © Ilya Pitalev/Pool Sputnik Kremlin/AP/dpa
Putin cancels important TV appearance in Russia: New date will be announced soon
As recently as May, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the Russian president would take part in the broadcast, which usually takes place in June. Last year, Putin also canceled his appearance. In the near future, a new date for Direct Line to Vladimir Putin will be announced, Peskov said.
Political consultant Jason Jay Smart told Newsweek: "Putin realizes that the counteroffensive could undermine everything he says publicly to citizens. The delay allows him to use the event later to justify why Russia lost territory in Ukraine." Above all, Putin fears the failures of his own troops.
The American Institute for the Study of War also sees the TV cancellation as a sign of "Putin's decline" from a "strong leader" to one who only occasionally shows up in public for infrastructure projects. Putin's behavior and several incidents indicate that the situation in Russia is slowly spiraling out of control. (Jakob von Sass)