‍By CGTN's The Point

“It is very important, in a sense, that he was highlighting why he is running for yet another term of presidency,” Lilit Gevorgyan, Russia and CIS Senior Economist at IHS Markit said, talking about the significance of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s annual news conference which took place on December 14.

During the conference, Putin announced his intention to run as an independent candidate in the 2018 election and highlighted the living standard of Russian people as an electoral priority.

“Despite all the positive messages that you would expect the incumbent to give to the audience, there is a problem there. The problem is Russia’s economy, despite the recovery mode, is not really looking into a brighter future. There are lots of problems. There are lots of structural problems. And that is what counts. Perhaps the foreign military victories will have a temporary impact, but ultimately, it is the living standards of ordinary Russians,” Gevorgyan said.

Regarding the Olympics doping scandal, Putin said the issue had been overly politicized, although Russia was partly responsible for letting it happen.

Putin also said that Russia would cooperate with the World Anti-Doping Agency and the International Olympic Committee over the issue but he would defend their interests in courts.

Dr. Ivan Eland, a Senior Fellow of The Independent Institute, said Putin’s remarks were “a very shrewd way to deflect the topic”.

He added that, “he is giving a partial admission but he is not admitting to the extent that it happened. That is unfortunate.”

On the future Russia-US relations, Eland said “he (Putin) is still hopeful that he can have a better relationship with the US. But it’s very difficult, as far as the US sanctions on RT, making them registered.”

Eland is referring to a Department of Justice mandate in November which required state-run broadcaster RT to register as a foreign agent, a move Eland himself disagreed with.

“We have to let other opinions come into the US from foreign countries and foreign networks. Competing opinions is what democracy is all about,” he explained.

“I think in a long term, the US and Russia will have a better relationship. But right now, everyone in the US is focused on the fact that there was meddling [in the presidential election].”