Changes in the Constitution, an assessment of history and freedom of the Internet: what Putin talked about at a big press conference

Vladimir Putin held the 15th major press conference. In 4 hours 18 minutes, the head of state paid attention to almost 80 issues of journalists, of which there were a record number at the conference - 1,895 people received accreditation.

About "garbage reform", pensions and medicines

The President was asked about the implementation of the “garbage reform” and the associated difficulties. Putin noted that the country had previously had no infrastructure for the disposal of household waste.

“This figure is well known: we generate 70 million tons of household waste per year throughout the country. 70 million tons! Can you imagine Great amount. And there has never been such an industry as household waste in the Soviet Union and in the new Russia, we are creating it from scratch, ”the president emphasized.

He continued that the main decisions in this regard were made, in particular, a federal operator was created, more than 200 regional operators were created, a territorial planning scheme was adopted to address this issue.

Answering a question about possible adjustments to pension legislation, the head of state said that payments will continue to grow, and the change in age is not discussed.

“No increases in the field of retirement age are foreseen or even discussed. And everything that was done before this did not affect pensioners. They were affected only in the sense that the state should increase the income of pensioners and pensions at a more accelerated pace, ”Putin said.

Answering a question about the law on domestic violence, Putin spoke about his mixed attitude to the document currently being drafted, which should regulate this area.

“What is my attitude to this matter? It is mixed. You cannot make love by force - first. Previously, we applied to local committees, party committees and demanded from these organizations that they restore order in the family, tame one of the spouses, primarily and most often, a man, of course, ”the head of state noted.

Putin stressed that he strongly opposed any violence, especially against children and women.

“This is simply a sign of a very low level of general culture, when a stronger individual begins to swing his rights with the help of his fists and brute physical strength. There is nothing good here, ”he said.

He also added that for regulation in this area it is possible to use, inter alia, current legislation.

“For a number of offenses, you can take advantage of the existing norms, including for hooliganism, for beating or even more grievous bodily harm, all this is in the current legislation,” the president said.

Answering a question from a RT correspondent about a shortage of vital medicines such as frizium and prednisone, Putin indicated that people should not be denied access to hard-to-reach drugs.

“Of course, we should not deprive people of the opportunity to use these medicines, and they need to be registered,” the president said. However, he noted that we should not forget about the development of our own pharmaceutical industry.

“In 90 countries, we are now exporting our medicines. In 90 countries of the world! This has never happened before. If we export there, it means that the quality of these drugs is recognized as world-class quality, otherwise they would simply not be taken, ”the head of state emphasized.

On the assessment of historical events

Putin spoke sharply about attempts to discuss the events of the Great Patriotic War, in particular, mentioning discussions about the advisability of “surrendering” Leningrad.

“When I hear that it might be good to pass Leningrad and so on, I want to say:“ Are you morons? Not? You wouldn’t have been anyone who argues like that today! ”The president said.

Speaking about the most difficult events of his presidency, Putin singled out terrorist attacks on Beslan and on Dubrovka.

“I have already talked about this: the most serious, of course, the major terrorist attacks are Beslan (I will never forget that), this is an attack on Dubrovka,” Putin said.

Constitutional changes, Golunov’s case and Internet freedom

Commenting on the journalist’s statements about the need for amendments to the Constitution, the president called the document a “living tool”, but noted that no changes should be made to it.

“But I still think that we should not change the Constitution, that is, adopt a new Constitution. Especially due to the fact that we have fundamental things that are fixed and which we still need to fully implement. This applies to the first chapter. In my opinion, it is inviolable, ”the president said.

However, the head of state said that some changes are permissible. As an example, he cited a clause on two consecutive presidential terms in article 81 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

“What could be done regarding these deadlines?” Cancel the reservation in a row. We have two terms in a row, your humble servant served two terms, then resigned and had the constitutional right to return to the presidency, because this was not two consecutive terms. She confuses some of our political scientists and public figures. It could have been canceled, probably, ”Putin said.

The president also answered the question about the resonant case of journalist Ivan Golunov.

“Indeed, it was decided to classify these materials. This is accepted due to the fact that during the investigation there are questions related to the organization of operational-search activities, and this information is considered closed. But this does not mean that the trial should not proceed properly, ”the president said.

However, he mentioned that as a result of the proceedings, five people were removed from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They were also fired and criminal proceedings were instituted against them.

The President paid attention to the issue of Internet freedom. According to him, the concepts of “free Internet” and “sovereign Internet” do not contradict each other.

“Herein lies sovereignty so that we have our own resources that can be included and that the Internet is not cut off from us. The meaning of this law is just that. And therefore, there are no restrictions, we are not moving towards the closure of the Internet, and we are not going to do this, ”the head of state said.