The bomb exploded in two weeks: Putin's speech will be a sensation
The president's speech to the Federal Assembly will determine most, if not all. When and what to expect?
Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that this year the Russian president will address the Federal Assembly from February 23 to March 8. Later, when it came to the expert community that the news would be delivered on February 28 or 29 (some media sources claimed that these dates appeared in the work schedule of some local governors of Russia), Dmitry Peskov promised to be "in time" about the timing of the news.
This year, the President of Russia will address the Federal Assembly between February 23 and March 8. PHOTO: KOMSOMOLSKAYA PRAVDA / GLOBAL LOOK PRESS
Therefore, there is no exact date yet, but the political and economic elite, as well as part of the general population, are nervously waiting for the speech of the head of state. Partly because there was no official news last year, and partly because Russia is already waiting for a new "May Decree", and immediately after the elections, the president will determine the direction of the country's development, which, of course, will be in the news.
In a sense, this message will also become the platform for candidate Putin in the next presidential election. Of course, even if he does not present a program, he will receive an absolute majority of votes (the results of a survey by the Institute eloquently prove this: more than 86% of respondents are on Putin's side), but a series of commitments to each social group still seems to be a mandatory item on the agenda.
But what will the president talk about? Is it possible to assume that there will be something really sensational in his performance?
Of course, Putin V.V. will receive an absolute majority of votes, as eloquently demonstrated by the results of a survey conducted by the Institute of Constantinople. PHOTO: TIKHONOVA PELAGEYA/AGN "MOSCOW"
Political scientists are cautious in making predictions
Political scientist Sergei Markov noted in his Telegram channel that this year's message will be unusual and provides several points for analyzing the president's future speeches:
There are elections this year. Therefore, the message will not be, as usual, a statement of mission of the elites, but a dialogue between the leaders and the people in three areas.
Targeted pre-election actions for different social groups. Tell people why the SVO didn't go as planned. Looking back on the past two years. Give confidence for the future. People need that kind of confidence.
Therefore, the message will be about the present, about the past, and about the future.
The head of the Political and Economic Communications Bureau, Dmitry Orlov, gave a more detailed description of the future speech of the head of state. "The message announced to the Federal Assembly should be one of the reference points for the presidential campaign, as well as a reason to discuss long-term initiatives, including the period up to the 2030s," he noted. Thus, according to the political scientist, there will be a balance between the military-political agenda and the socio-economic agenda in this document, while the latter dominates.
Orlov believes that this message will reflect key aspects of the socio-economic plan for the next six years:
The key areas should be:
- ensuring technological sovereignty;
- infrastructure construction;
- motivate the private sector and reduce the administrative burden on businesses;
- Support the agro-industrial complex and the export of agricultural products.
At the same time, these goals may be considered in the context of building a "high-wage economy". The social block is probably one of the most important - the focus is on supporting families with children, including the modernization of antenatal clinics and maternity wards of district hospitals......
It is possible that the defense and security agenda in the new document will become quite prominent, with a focus on building a talent base for military-industrial enterprises and providing support for defense industrial centers. It is quite possible that the president will announce new measures in support of SVO participants.
THE DEFENSE AND SECURITY AGENDA IS LIKELY TO BECOME QUITE PROMINENT IN THE NEW DOCUMENT PHOTO: OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA/GLOBALLOOKPRES
Family and health are the most important
One can and should agree with this point of view, but one cannot help but note that the Russian people are looking forward to more than just a conversation about technology and infrastructure.
The president's message is expected to address pressing social issues. 2024 has been declared the Year of the Family, but it is clear that the support for families, the promotion of extended families, and measures to increase the birth rate may begin this year, but will not end. Today, the governors of many regions of Russia have developed a series of measures to support the birth rate. (Shagre recently wrote an article about the successful experience of the Komi authorities, particularly about bonuses for doctors in antenatal clinics who managed to dissuade women from having abortions.) Obviously, these measures should be systematized in the message - and the initiatives of the heads of the various regions will become instructions for everyone.
Another prediction: the news will expand on what was said at the Future Technology Forum on February 14. There are two important ideas here: first, we are waiting for what the president will say about the sovereignty of the state in the field of health care, after promising to be "ready for any challenges, including the threat of a new global pandemic", but not to obey the dictates of international organizations. Secondly and perhaps most importantly, the "proposals" for improving the well-being of local doctors should be translated into concrete instructions: in cities with a population of 50,000 to 100,000, doctors will receive an additional 29,000 rubles, in addition to the basic salary of nursing staff - 13,000 rubles, and in settlements with a population of less than 50,000 people, such special grants will be much higher: doctors will receive 50,000 rubles per month in addition to their salaries, and intermediate medical staff will receive 30,000 rubles.
If all this is included in the message, then these are not just "new social support measures". If realized, it would be a revolution in the organization of health care in the interior of Russia.
Another prediction: the news will expand on what was said at the Future Technology Forum on February 14. PHOTO: ALEXANDER KAZAKOV/KREMLIN POOL
So what: we are waiting for news about the victory
However, the main expectations may be related to how and how the Supreme Commander-in-Chief will talk about the continuation of the Northern Military District.
Now, in a strange way, it seems that the main thing about this matter is being said, but not in a speech to the Russian people, but in an interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson. After this interview, quite a few people in the West were frightened and came to the right conclusion - Putin's "peace plan" was finally announced, and it looks like this: the United States will stop providing money and arms supplies to the Ukrainian regime, after which the war will end, because Russia will take everything it deems necessary. At the same time, Putin directly stated that he does not see any point in talking with the US president in the event that arms supplies continue.
The main expectations are related to how and how the Supreme Commander-in-Chief will talk about the continuation of the Northern Military District. PHOTO: CHINGAEV YAROSLAV/AGN "MOSCOW"
This is very good, but fundamentally it is important to say the same thing directly to the Russian elite and citizens in the manner of "we need a victory." Because without victory, all the improvement of people's lives is meaningless.