Putin promises more war, despite the fatigue of the Russians: "Our duty is victory"

MoscowVladimir Putin not only does not believe that the stubbornness to continue the war in Ukraine to the bitter end could be a burden for the legislative elections of September 20, but he considers it an attraction. The Russian president has dedicated a large part of his speech at the congress of his party, United Russia, to defending the need to achieve victory. Although the event was supposed to serve to present the campaign program, Putin has overlooked the citizens' major concerns and has avoided making any concrete promises to reverse the poor economic situation or internet blockages.

The Kremlin leader's party goes into its first elections for the Duma in wartime at one of its worst moments in the polls. Currently, it has about 35% voting intention, after having hit rock bottom in March, when it fell to 30%, the worst figure since February 2022. Six months earlier, it had obtained almost 50% of the votes. These poor forecasts, added to the fact that two out of three Russians are in favor of peace talks, led some analysts to predict that the Russian president would reduce mentions of the conflict and try to seduce the electorate with commitments. But that has not been the case. "United Russia's duty is to do everything possible to achieve victory in the Special Military Operation," said Putin, who ended his speech with the cry "victory will be ours!".

Putin only referred to one of the Russians' concerns: Ukrainian drone attacks. But he did so to point out that they are a sign of Volodymyr Zelensky's desperation. "The more difficult the situation becomes on the front for the enemy, the more brutal and barbaric the attacks of the Kyiv regime become," he stated. In other words, the waves of hundreds of devices against Russian territory that are causing record numbers of civilian deaths every night do not force a rethink of their military strategy, but rather are a confirmation of the imminent triumph of the Russian army. "I am sure that our soldiers will not disappoint us," he concluded.

Furthermore, Putin has wanted to dip bread in Ukraine's internal political disputes, following the request of the former Minister of Defense, Mikhailo Fedorov, for Zelensky to call elections. The Russian president, who has long claimed that Ukrainians should go to the polls as a way to weaken the country's cohesion and bring about the political defeat of his enemy, has once again tried to pressure him. "Not even in the most difficult circumstances will we deviate from the principles of popular sovereignty, we will hold elections from Vladivostok to Donbas.", he proclaimed, alluding to Kyiv's refusal to organize elections in the midst of war.

No response to social unrest

United Russia had been postponing the publication of its electoral program in view of the evidence of social unrest with its policies. Growing restrictions on the internet have made daily life difficult for entrepreneurs and have particularly angered the younger generation, and all citizens are suffering the consequences of gasoline shortages and inflation. But Putin denies the alarm signals. “Russia is developing despite all difficulties, launching large-scale projects to develop the economy, defense, and public administration,” he declared.

The Russian president has limited himself to listing a series of vague priorities for United Russia: “Support for families with children, the construction of a strong economy, or the defense of values and traditions.” The only concrete promise has been made by the party chairman, Dmitry Medvedev, who has pointed out that his medium-term goal is to raise the minimum wage to 35,000 rubles per month, the equivalent of about 350 euros. This is the same as Putin had already announced during the 2024 presidential campaign. “United Russia has never made empty promises,” the Russian leader had boasted a few minutes earlier.

Despite the conviction that the population supports him and the triumphalism about the socioeconomic situation, some symptoms show that there is nervousness in the Kremlin. After increasing repression against the only pacifist party that had initially been allowed to run in the elections, Yabloko, Russian justice is now beginning to veto popular candidates of the systemic opposition. First, it excluded from the process the Communist Party deputy Mikhail Matviyev, from Samara, who in 2022 had opposed the war, although he later retracted. And on Friday, in Saratov, police arrested Nikolai Bondarenko, also a communist, who had gained a large following online with a speech against social inequality.