Putin approval falls to 65.6% amid war, weak economy and blackouts

A national poll by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center shows President Vladimir Putin’s approval rating at 65.6%, a decline of 12.2 percentage points so far this year and the lowest level since the Ukraine conflict began. The poll comes amid growing public frustration tied to the war, worsening economic indicators and sudden internet blackouts.

The drop follows months of criticism from business leaders and officials over economic performance, and increased domestic security measures. Authorities have carried out raids on publishers and media outlets and restricted the activities of some rights groups. The government says some actions address security threats.

Economic data released this year show a contraction in output. Gross domestic product fell by 1.8% in January and February combined. Federal statistics record a January peak of $109 billion in unpaid commercial bills, and nearly 440,000 businesses were behind on tax payments. At a recent business forum in Moscow, executives and economists criticized the government’s handling of the economy.

President Putin pressed ministers in televised remarks on April 15, calling recent economic numbers worse than expected. Economy Minister Maxim Reshetnikov told business audiences that the country’s financial reserves are “largely exhausted.” The central bank, which had raised interest rates above 20% to counter inflation, has cut the benchmark rate five times, bringing it to 14.5%.

Manufacturers and business owners reported strain. Vladimir Bogalev, owner of a tractor manufacturer, accused officials of having “completely lost touch with the real economy.” Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov warned lawmakers that without urgent interventions the country could face unrest comparable to 1917.

Analysts and foreign intelligence assessments report strain in the defense industry, citing losses, corruption and heavy dependence on state bank lending. Higher oil prices provided a temporary fiscal boost, but Ukrainian drone strikes on ports and refineries forced Moscow to cut oil production by an estimated 300,000 to 400,000 barrels per day in April, reducing those gains.

Domestic enforcement actions have included a raid on a major publisher over LGBTQ content in young adult fiction, police searches of an independent newspaper’s offices, and a Supreme Court ruling that labeled Memorial, the country’s oldest human rights organization, as an extremist group. The United Nations criticized that designation as effectively criminalizing human rights work. The FSB training academy was renamed after Felix Dzerzhinsky, a symbolic change noted by observers.

Government-imposed internet blackouts, described by officials as counterterrorism measures, were implemented without public warning in some cases. A logistics manager, Tatyana, 53, complained, “We already lived behind the Iron Curtain once. Now we have a digital one.” A 19-year-old student, Igor, declared, “Everyone wants to leave. No one wants to tie their future to this country.”

Officials have proposed a mix of short-term measures and longer-term reforms. Some policymakers argue that export revenues can help stabilize finances in the near term, while other voices in government and the business community call for clearer policy direction and faster support for troubled firms.

Pollsters note the official approval figure may understate private dissatisfaction because public criticism of the war is subject to criminal penalties. Even allowing for that limitation, analysts say the decline in measured support for the president is evident.