Putin in his place: Moment Smug Vladimir tries to catch his subordinate by pointing out an ‘error’ on a map…. before the brave official politely corrects the Kremlin supremo

This is the moment when a smug Vladimir Putin is sidelined by one of his top energy officials in a dispute during a tense discussion about Russia’s infrastructure projects in the Arctic.

Director General of Russia’s State Atomic Energy Company, Rosatom Alexei Likhachev, visited the Kremlin yesterday where he gave a presentation on the company’s achievements and ongoing projects under Vladimir’s steely gaze.

After a lengthy speech in which he boasted of Rosatom’s 24 percent annual sales growth and praised the successes of the company’s work to make Russia a major global nuclear energy player, the Director General shared a map of the Russian Arctic to discuss development. of the Northern Sea Route and transport networks.

Rejecting Lichachev’s work, Putin immediately intervened and declared with a grin: “In your presentation the project of the Northern Latitudinal Railway is missing. It has to be shown.’

But the energy boss calmly pointed out that the railway lines were clearly marked and told the head of the Kremlin: ‘The Northern Latvian Railway 1 extends from Nadym to Obskaya, and the Northern Latvian Railway 2 runs from Obskaya to Sabetta.

‘The two parts are shown here with a short dotted line.’

Putin was visibly confused and lowered his head to look at the map before realizing he had made a mistake.

He later bit back, ordering Likhachev to emphasize the lines even as the official pointed out that budget constraints had curtailed construction plans.

Putin is seen giving a smug smile to Lichachev, but he was quickly taken off the ground by the official who pointed out his mistake

Putin was visibly confused and lowered his head to look at the map before realizing he had made a mistake

In this Friday, August 7, 2020 file photo, staff work to load nuclear fuel at Belarus’ first nuclear power plant, which was built by Russia’s state nuclear company Rosatom, near Astravets, Belarus.

This distribution photo, taken and released on August 23, 2019, by the Russian nuclear agency ROSATOM, shows the floating energy unit (FPU) Akademik Lomonosov being towed from the Arctic port of Murmansk, in northwestern Russia

Rosatom oversees the maintenance, modernization and development of Russia’s fearsome nuclear arsenal

Besides the misunderstanding that seemed to worry the Russian president, Lichachev’s presentation was well received.

Rosatom is a giant company responsible not only for Russia’s domestic and international nuclear energy programs, but also for a host of infrastructure projects, in addition to defense and technology production.

It is, of course, also the organization that oversees the maintenance, modernization and development of Russia’s fearsome nuclear arsenal.

Likhachev explained how, despite the pressure of Western sanctions, the ongoing war in Ukraine and turbulent economic conditions, Rosatom was enjoying rising domestic and foreign revenues and had also secured significant returns on its investments.

The official underlined that the state-owned company now employs a staggering workforce of more than 400,000 people in Russia and is on track to meet Putin’s demand that 25 percent of the country’s electricity come from nuclear power by 2040.

Rosatom has also consolidated its position as a major player in nuclear exports and is largely responsible for Russia’s successful brand of energy diplomacy, a cornerstone of Moscow’s foreign policy strategy that cultivates the Kremlin’s influence worldwide.

Likhachev highlighted the successful launch of a nuclear power plant in Belarus as a notable recent achievement.

But he also mentioned a range of countries where Rosatom has managed to win lucrative long-term contracts to build and maintain new power stations, or to supply nuclear fuel to existing ones.

Some of the countries that have signed a deal with Rosatom include NATO member Turkey, China, India, Iran and Egypt.

Soviet AN-602 hydrogen bomb during an exhibition organized by the Rosatom Bureau in Moscow, Russia

Russia’s ’50 Years of Victory’ nuclear-powered icebreaker built by Rosatom is seen at the North Pole on August 18, 2021

A photo shows the production of a RITM-200 nuclear reactor, the newest reactor for the icebreaker fleet, at the ZiO-Podolsk Machine-Building Plant, an enterprise of the Russian nuclear agency Rosatom, in the city of Podolsk, Moscow. region on December 5, 2023

President of Russia’s state-owned nuclear energy company Rosatom Alexey Likhachev delivers a speech during the 68th General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna, Austria on September 16, 2024

As the meeting drew to a close, Likhachev expressed gratitude for Putin’s continued support for Rosatom and said the company would continue with its ambitious plans ahead of a major milestone next year.

The year 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the launch of the Soviet Union’s nuclear power industry in 1945, during the final moments of World War II.

Less than ten years later, the Soviet Union launched the world’s first nuclear power plant in June 1954: the Obninsk nuclear power plant.

The official even received a rare ounce of praise from the Russian president, who approved Likhachev’s request to organize a series of events in August and September to commemorate the 80th anniversary and agreed to take part in the celebration.

“Mr President, next year we will celebrate 80 years of the nuclear industry… we certainly invite you, and we would very much like to make it a day of celebration, not only for the workers of the nuclear industry, but also for the entire country and for all our partners. abroad,” Lichachev said.

“Very good, of course,” Putin replied.

‘Eighty years… but the future is bright.’