NEWSWATCH: “Vladimir Putin gives a Soviet-style state of the union, and some #Russian eyes glazed over” – Washington Post/David Filipov/Andrew Roth
… Putin called for better ties with the United States in his annual address … while brushing away … concerns about Kremlin interference in other countries. But the moment that went viral … was … Medvedev, eyes turned down, appearing to doze off. Whether the premier was napping or … checking his notes …. In a businesslike tone that recalled a Soviet Communist Party Central Committee meeting, Putin ticked off various economic issues and raised his emotional level — and his own voice — only when he brought up the Olympics doping scandal and ‘external pressure’ on Russia. …