Putin, president of life

Asked what he would do when the presidency ends, Vladimir Putin pauses and smiles.

But I haven't decided yet whether to leave the presidency or not, says the Russian leader, received with laughter and applause from an audience composed almost entirely of Russians who were born after he became president for the first time in 2000.

A month after thousands of young Russians took to the streets to protest corruption in the Kremlin elite, Putin participated in a event conceived as a conversation, with hundreds of children, in an effort to portray himself as a president, friend of young people. 

The presidential elections in Russia will be held next March, and Putin is expected to run and win another six-year term.

Putin spent a full three-hour conversation with the children, on the live event on Russian television, and appears to have been taken early so that there would be no embarrassing questions at the event.  

Unlike Putin's press conferences, which usually range from one topic to another, the discussion with children focused on their achievements in sports, music and science and on Putin's life and personal preferences.  

I like to talk to friends, read historical books, listen to music and practice sports”, Putin said.  

Asked about his dreams as a child, he hesitated to tell you, but said: “Dreams are things that change over time, you should be glad you have a dream and walk towards it” Asked if you use the internet, Putin said he didn't do it almost ever, but added that the way people use nicknames, or false identities online, is similar to what he used during his work at the KGB.