The old Putin gets set to swagger back - FT.comThe old swagger was still there; the shoulder-rolling walk. So, too, were the barbed criticisms of the west, and the mastery of detail – especially on the gas industry.
Strangely lacking was any vision of the modernising reforms many analysts believe Russia sorely needs.
Mr Putin admitted the highly centralised system he created was creaking, and said he would not tighten the screws further. But any loosening seems set to be gradual.
“I hope changes will take place in a calm, evolutionary way, in harmony between the positions of ruling elites and the citizens,” he said.
The subjects about which Mr Putin became passionate were the same as ever: foreign policy and energy. He accused the US of irresponsible foreign policies and of harbouring cold war attitudes. He complained that the European Union was trying to “squeeze us out of the European energy market”.
The Russian prime minister chose an exclusive restaurant at an equestrian club outside Moscow for his annual dinner with the so-called Valdai Discussion Club. In an elegant dining room, complete with leather-bound books and a bottle of 1880 Armagnac, he answered questions over smoked trout, duck liver, a venison solyanka, veal cheeks and pear soup.
Participants saw a typically bravura display of the Russian premier’s ability to hold forth on almost any subject, mixing acid humour with flashes of anger.
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