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Final of ’20 Questions with Vladimir Putin’ TASS project to come out on his birthday

The ’20 Questions with Vladimir Putin’ project was launched on February 20

MOSCOW, October 6. /TASS/. The final episode of the TASS project dubbed ’20 Questions with Vladimir Putin’ will come out on Wednesday, October 7, coinciding with the Russian leader’s birthday as he turns 68. The final part of the interview includes Putin’s answers to personal question that did not make the cut previously. He will tell viewers about his close ones, hobbies and values and the most significant losses.

The ’20 Questions with Vladimir Putin’ project was launched on February 20. It is based on an exclusive video interview conducted by TASS journalist Andrei Vandenko with the president and marks Putin’s 20 years serving in high offices (he was first elected president on March 26, 2020). The project is aimed at the Internet audiences and features graphics, facts and quotes. The previous episodes were centered on events that took place in Russia and the world in the past 20 years and the president’s assessments of the current situation.

The interview discussed a wide range of topics: from the situation in Ukraine to relations with the US to Russia’s place in the world, an arms race, high-profile criminal cases, preserving WW2 memory, civil society issues, opposition role as well as Putin’s plans beyond 2024 when the next presidential elections are supposed to take place in Russia. The project’s episodes racked up more than 100 million views.

After most episodes were published, the project was suspended in March. The decision was caused by the dramatic change in the news agenda which completely contradicts the idea behind the project - an attempt to assess changes in the country that took place in the past two decades together with the president rather than discuss the current events. This idea was backed by the Kremlin. "It is clear that the current news agenda - both Russian and global - is focused on totally different questions," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said then.

The continuous coronavirus pandemic still significantly affects the news picture. However, the final episode of the project is not dedicated to political or economic issues and instead is centered around personal questions, and it will symbolically close out the project on Putin’s birthday.

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