The Kremlin are “concerned” over Vladimir Putin’s up coming election next year as Russian perceptions of the support of the war are “changing.”
In an opinion poll the number of ordinary Russians who support Putin’s war in Ukraine has almost halved since February this year.
More Russians are now supporting the withdrawal of their troops from the Ukrainian war, whilst some respondents do not support the withdrawal of Russian troops until they achieve their war aims.
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US think tank the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said, “The Russian war in Ukraine has created new social tensions and exacerbated existing ones within Russia, which remain highly visible in the Russian information space despite ongoing Kremlin censorship efforts.
“Relatives of mobilized personnel continue making widespread complaints and appeals for aid for mobilised personnel despite reported Russian efforts to censor such complaints.
The Kremlin has consistently failed to place Russian society on a wartime footing to support the Russian war effort, and the shifting poll numbers and exacerbated social tensions indicate that this failure is having a tangible effect on Russian society ahead of the 2024 Russian presidential elections.
The Kremlin is likely concerned about how changing Russian perceptions of the Russian war in Ukraine will affect the outcome of the March 2024 Russian presidential election and is implementing measures to ensure that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s actual electoral support does not rest on Russian battlefield successes.
“The Kremlin has likely attempted to shore up popular support for Putin throughout Russia by establishing a network of ‘proxies’ to campaign on Putin’s behalf.”
