What's going to happen to Ukraine?

[fresh_42]

I'm not a fan of this source, but it has an interesting article. The translation is quick and dirty by Chrome. The link to the original publication is at the end.

"On the verge of social explosion": Open revolt against Putin reaches the Russian Duma​

Moscow – A Russian parliamentarian has demanded that Vladimir Putin present a plan to end the war in Ukraine, while sharply criticizing the Kremlin's "ineffective leadership." In his lengthy tirade, Vyacheslav Markkhayev listed corruption scandals, oligarchy, the loss of "the most active and reproductively productive segment of the population," and Ukrainian drone attacks among the evils plaguing Russia in the war.

“The time for illusions is over. The country is on the verge of a social explosion, and the blame will lie entirely with the entrenched ruling power,” said Mr. Markchayev, a State Duma deputy from Russia’s Communist Party. “If the situation persists, social unrest and chaos will become more likely,” he lamented, warning: “The West will inevitably exploit this to destroy what remains of Russian statehood.”

Criticism of the Kremlin is growing: More and more politicians and former supporters are turning against Putin​

The deputy joins a growing list of public figures who have broken ranks with the official line to criticize the authorities. At the end of last month, Renat Suleimanov, another State Duma deputy from the same party, called for an “as soon as possible end” to the war, saying the economy could not “endure” its continuation.

In March, Ilya Remeslo, previously a staunch Kremlin loyalist, suddenly turned against Putin, publishing a scathing public indictment labeling the Russian president a "war criminal and thief" and demanding he be brought to justice. Discontent with the authorities has been simmering ominously in recent months, coupled with widespread internet outages, sluggish progress on the front lines, and extensive Ukrainian attacks that have penetrated the heart of Russia's two largest cities.

Declining trust in Putin: Russia stops publishing poll data​

This week, it was reported that the state-controlled Russian Center for Public Opinion Research (VTsIOM) will no longer publish Putin's "open" trust ratings after they fell to their lowest level since the start of the large-scale invasion. At the beginning of April, only 29.5 percent of Russians named their president as one of the politicians they trusted, before the poll was mysteriously discontinued.

Concerns about the economy's resilience have also triggered a backlash. Growth has slowed to a standstill. Inflation remains high. Ukrainian attacks on refineries and terminals, the heart of Russia's economy, have torn a huge hole in Moscow's oil-driven budget and pushed crude oil processing to its lowest level in 16 years.

Russia: Defense spending reaches its highest level since the Cold War​

Meanwhile, high defense spending, which has reached post-Cold War levels, has triggered growing alarm at the Russian Finance Ministry. Military expenditures rose by more than 30 percent at the beginning of 2026 compared to the previous year, reaching 46 percent of total budget expenditures, according to Dr. Janis Kluge, economist and senior associate at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs.

Source: https://www.fnp.de/politik/zusammen...-stehen-am-rand-des-sozialen-zr-94349992.html

Comment: One should note that the common Russian communication is very direct. It's, in a way, the opposite of how the English communicate. All others, including Americans and Germans, are somewhere in between. This means that the citations sound rougher and more direct to our ears than to Russian ears. It's not as if a revolution is ante portas.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

"On the verge of social explosion": Open revolt against Putin reaches the Russian Duma

This type of stuff has been written for the past couple years and nothing has changed the course of Russia. I am skeptical until I see it.

 

[fresh_42]

This type of stuff has been written for the past couple years and nothing has changed the course of Russia. I am skeptical until I see it.

See my comment at the end of the post.

Comment: One should note that the common Russian communication is very direct. It's, in a way, the opposite of how the English communicate. All others, including Americans and Germans, are somewhere in between. This means that the citations sound rougher and more direct to our ears than to Russian ears. It's not as if a revolution is ante portas.

The résumé should be another: the costs of this war are becoming increasingly significant for the Russian economy. Russians are traditionally accustomed to enduring a great deal before they rebel. The Kremlin-aligned oligarchs are secure. The intellectuals and artists have left. That does not leave many people for a genuine rebellion. However, it was the rotten economy that had once before brought about a real turning point in the USSR.