The “Direct Line” program, in which Vladimir Putin answers questions from the public, is again expected to be held together with his annual press conference this year. The Kremlin announced Tuesday that preparations for the event had begun.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at his daily press briefing that preparations were proceeding in line with the approach used last year and in previous years. Peskov said the combined event would include both the “Direct Line” program and the president’s major annual press conference.
Exact date not announced
Peskov did not provide a date for this year’s program. Last year’s combined event was held on December 19, 2025.
The program in which Putin answers questions from the public and the year-end press conference were combined into a single format in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The two events have been held in the same format since then.
Neural network to process submissions
In a statement on Sunday, Peskov said an artificial neural network developed by state-owned bank Sberbank would help process a much larger number of submissions from the public ahead of the event. Peskov described the network as “mature.”
According to the Kremlin, more than 3 million questions were submitted to last year’s program. Launched in 2001, the program presents Putin as a leader who directly responds to complaints that regional and local officials have been unable to resolve.