Russia quiet on Tucker Carlson's visit to Moscow

[Ubiquitous]

Russia is keeping its cards close to its chest over the swirling speculation
that former Fox News host Tucker Carlson could interview Russian President
Vladimir Putin while on his trip to Moscow.

The possibility was raised over the weekend when Carlson was spotted at
multiple spots in Russia's capital city, including at the Bolshoi Theatre and
dining at a hotel, according to a Reuters report.

Pressed on the prospect, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stopped short of
denying a possible interview and instead pointed to the "many" foreign
journalists who visit Russia.

"Many foreign journalists come to Russia every day, many continue to work
here, and we welcome this," Peskov said, according to the news wire. "We have
nothing to announce in terms of the president's interviews to foreign media."

In a separate interview released by the Izvestia newspaper, Carlson described
Moscow as "beautiful," per Reuters.

"I just wanted to see it because, you know, I have read so much about it but
I have never seen it before," he said.

Asked if he was in Russia to interview Putin, Carlson responded, "We'll see,"
and reportedly smiled. Carlson would become the first Western journalist to
interview Putin during the nation's war with Ukraine, Reuters noted.

Carlson launched a new subscription site in December for fans who want to pay
for additional content. It came months after he was ousted from Fox News
because of his criticism of company management. He now hosts a periodical
news and political commentary show for free on X, the platform formerly known
as Twitter.

He has interviewed several high-profile U.S. politicians since launching the
show, including former President Trump, Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor
Greene (Ga.) and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R).

Carlson, a skeptic of U.S. support for Ukraine, has described Ukrainian
President Volodymyr Zelensky as a "dictator" and "sweaty-like rat," and in
2022 he said he was "rooting for Moscow," The Guardian reported.

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Let's go Brandon!