MOSCOW, May 11. /TASS/. The latest instalment in the Kremlin’s traditional series of meetings with key players in Russia’s defense sector in Sochi has not yet been penciled in to Russian President Vladimir Putin's schedule, due to the current workload burdens the special military operation has placed on the Defense Ministry and other components of the country’s military-industrial complex, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Thursday.

"They [the meetings] will take place when the president deems it advisable. The special military operation is underway, which represents an additional load on the staff of the Defense Ministry and [other key organizations within] the military-industrial complex, which, of course, precludes the possibility of leaving their work stations and getting together en masse in Sochi. The circumstances are different right now, and this is being factored in when scheduling [such meetings], but right now there are no such plans," he said, replying to a question by TASS on the matter.

Previously, the head of state had traditionally assembled the Defense Ministry top brass and defense sector executives, as well as the chief designers of key defense enterprises, twice a year in Sochi. In 2019, the usual format was adjusted somewhat to include on-site visits by Putin to military facilities and entire series of meetings devoted exclusively to specific branches of Russia’s Armed Forces. November 2021 marked the most recent occasion when the development of Russia’s Armed Forces was discussed in this format.