Vladimir Putin has told a child he believes in Father Christmas as “all normal, decent people” do. During a “highly choreographed visit” to a youth conference, the Russian president was asked by the teen whether he believed in Father Frost, the Russian equivalent of Father Christmas, reported The Telegraph. “Of course I do,” said Putin. “All normal, decent people believe in Father Frost.”
Sheriff deputy breaks up fight between hawk and snake
Mannequin causes obscenity panic
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Here We Are: Stephen Sondheim's 'utterly absorbing' final musicalThe Week Recommends The musical theatre legend's last work is 'witty, wry and suddenly wise'
-
The Trial: 'sharp' legal drama with a 'clever' scriptThe Week Recommends Channel 5's one-off show imagines a near future where parents face trial for their children's crimes
-
Riefenstahl: a 'gripping and incrementally nauseating' documentaryThe Week Recommends Andres Veiel's nuanced film examines whether the controversial film director was complicit in Nazi war crimes
-
Putin talks nukes as Kyiv slated for US air defensesspeed read 'I hope they will not be required,' Putin said of nuclear weapons on Russian state TV
-
Ukraine-US minerals deal: is Trump turning away from Putin?Today's Big Question US shows 'exasperation' with Russia and signs agreement with Ukraine in what could be a significant shift in the search for peace
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designationThe Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across SyriaTHE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weaponsThe Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarrayIn the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
-
Romania's election chaos risks international falloutIN THE SPOTLIGHT By barring far-right candidate Calin Georgescu from the country's upcoming electoral re-do, Romania places itself in the center of a broader struggle over European ultra-nationalism
