Putin Humiliates Deputy PM In Front Of Officials For Publicly Correcting Him [Video]

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with leadership of military-industrial complex enterprises in Tula — Reuters

KEY POINTS

Putin complained about the progress of procuring new planes for the country in a Wednesday meeting
Putin later demanded Manturov to get the job done in a month
A video of the confrontation was shared by state-owned RIA Novosti

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday gave one of his deputy prime ministers a public dressing-down after the minister corrected him during a meeting.

In July, Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, who also serves as the minister for trade and industry, was handed the responsibility of setting up 175 billion rubles worth ($2.56 billion) of contracts with state-owned airline Aeroflot and procuring new planes for the country.

In a video of the meeting shared by a Twitter account associated with state media RIA Novosti on Wednesday, Putin was seen complaining that some enterprises have yet to secure contracts for constructing new aircraft. Manturov shot back, arguing that "investment projects" were underway.

Putin again complained that the project was "taking too long," only to be corrected by his deputy prime minister again, who told him "all the enterprises" have received orders for the year, The Daily Beast noted.

The Russian leader again insisted he was right, only to be corrected by Manturov for a third time. This led Putin to adopt a mocking tone and publicly call out the Trade and Industry Minister.

"Let's finish this, what's the point of sparring here with you? The directors told me [there are no contracts]. Really, why are you playing the fool?" Putin said, later demanding that Manturov get the job in one month.

"Доооолгоооо. Слишком долго".

Путин недоволен, что некоторые предприятия до сих пор не понимают, какие заказы им поступят. Досталось Мантурову.

"Денис Валентинович, у вас сверстано, а контрактов нет. Что вы, в самом деле, дурака валяете?"

Президент дал вице-премьеру месяц. pic.twitter.com/0TGMyayO15
— Кремлевский пул РИА (@Kremlinpool_RIA) January 11, 2023

During the meeting, Putin also claimed all his "problems" in Ukraine would be fixed soon. However, he did not elaborate on his plans for the war.

The meeting comes on the same day Putin replaced Sergei Surovikin, the commander leading the Russian army in the war in Ukraine, with Gen. Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, according to a Telegram post.

It is unclear why the Russian Defense Ministry made the move. However, Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Philadelphia-based think tank the Foreign Policy Research Institute, suggested that it could be "driven by political reasons."

The military shuffle follows reports that Russia could be gathering its forces in preparation for another escalation in the war in Ukraine that could take place by February when the soldiers it conscripted last year finish their training.