Man arrested on Red Square for lighting fireworks on Putin's birthday

A man lit fireworks on Red Square on the night of Thursday, October 7th, to celebrate Putin's 69th birthday. The video of the incident appeared on Readovka Telegram channel.

The man was arrested, and during the arrest he told the police that he was a fan of Russian President Vladimir Putin and wanted to congratulate him on his birthday with his act. 

On October 7, 2021, Vladimir Putin turned 69. 

The man's statement did not help him avoid being taken to the police station for further investigation. Most likely, the prankster will have to pay a fine. 

How Putin celebrates his birthday

Russian President Vladimir Putin rarely makes a day off for his birthday. He does not have a tradition to "throw a party" at work on this day either, his press secretary Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"There is no tradition to throw a party to celebrate. You know, the president rarely frees this day from work meetings, an this is definitely a working day in the administration," Peskov said.

Permanent members of the Security Council, with whom the president has a meeting scheduled for today, will of course congratulate Putin, he added.

When asked whether they give the head of state any gifts, Peskov said that "sometimes they do", especially ​​when "face-to-face meetings" take place. "Today's meeting will be held via a video link," Peskov said.

When asked whether foreign leaders send gifts to Putin, the Kremlin spokesman replied: "It depends."