Putin greets kids, views 'nuclear button' as re-election bid nears

Russian President Vladimir Putin visits the "Russia" forum and exhibition celebrating the country's major achievements in Moscow, Russia, December 4, 2023. Sputnik/Mikhail Voskresensky/Pool via REUTERS

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin was shown a simulation of the "nuclear button" but declined to press it on Monday as he toured a vast exhibition of Russian achievements in what looked like a warm-up for an imminent re-election campaign.

Putin was given an explanation of a Soviet nuclear bomb design and shown a mock control panel for launching a nuclear test, before observing images of a blast and mushroom cloud through a viewing window.