Putin challenges West to ‘high-tech duel’ in Kyiv

Russian President Vladimir Putin promised on Tuesday that he would help to find American journalist Austin Tice who went missing in Syria a dozen years ago. 

Speaking at a marathon four-and-a-half hour news conference at which he fielded questions from journalists and the general public, Putin said he would bring up Tice’s fate with Syria’s former dictator Bashar al-Assad who fled to Russia after his regime was ousted by rebels earlier this month.

“I promise to ask this question,” he said in response to a question from NBC News’ Keir Simmons, who attended the conference.     

Putin, whose comments were translated into English, added that he had not seen Assad since he arrived in Russia, but referring to Tice, he said “a person went missing 12 years ago, we understand what situation was there back then.”

Putin covered a range of subjects during the conference, including the war in Ukraine, the economy as well as President Joe Biden, his successor Donald Trump and Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza.   

Joking about Biden’s pardon for his son Hunter before he was scheduled to be sentenced for his conviction on federal gun charges and in a separate criminal case in which he pleaded guilty to federal tax evasion charges, Putin said his American counterpart was “a politician.” 

“It turned out that Biden is more of a human being,” he said. “I would not blame him.”

On Trump, he rejected a question that he would have a weaker hand in negotiations with the future president, insisting he was “ready for this.”

He said his “forces were advancing” in Ukraine, and Russia’s “defense capabilities are the highest in the world, same for our military industry.” 

Asked about a ceasefire, he said it would depend on whether “the U.S. manages to persuade Kyiv.”

But, he added, “we don’t need a ceasefire, we need a long-term peace.”

The annual show is as much spectacle as news conference. Journalists and members of the public in the hall near the Kremlin wave colorful signs and placards to attract Putin’s attention.

Ordinary citizens submitted more than 2 million questions ahead of the show, Russian state media reported.