ST. PETERSBURG, June 5. /TASS/. News agencies from unfriendly countries set the information agenda in the West, that’s why they were also invited to a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalist Pavel Zarubin.
"In one way or another, these are the agencies that shape the flow of information in the world. They are the information trendsetters," he said. "It is very important for them to get to know Putin and understand Russia firsthand. This is a unique opportunity for them," the spokesman pointed out.
Peskov emphasized that Western media are under pressure because Western countries "have their own specific methods of working with the media," but these organizations "are trying to maintain the quality of world news agencies," so they will try to "hear" the Russian president.
"We expect a very interesting conversation," the spokesman underscored. "It is noteworthy that after the start of the special military operation this is actually the first time when Putin meets [with the media pool] where the guests include the heads of news agencies of unfriendly countries - countries that have managed to become unfriendly since then," he added.
Putin’s meeting with representatives of leading foreign news agencies will be held for the eighth time on the SPIEF sidelines. The participants of the meeting freely discuss with the Russian leader the most topical issues of Russia’s domestic and foreign policy. Putin has always highly assessed such a format of communication. The last meeting in this format was held online in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.