Ukrainian drone strikes deep inside Russia, soaring food prices and fuel shortages are pushing even supporters of Vladimir Putin to question the war, according to ABC News interviews with residents of Moscow and St Petersburg published on Aug. 1.
Svetlana, a Muscovite in her 50s, said explosions near her holiday house, close to one of the capital’s airports, have become routine. “I was there a couple of days ago and we had six explosions one night,” she told the ABC. “You are no longer just reading about this war in the newspaper. I’m lying on the bed and feeling it myself.”
For years, people in Russia’s largest and most affluent cities were shielded from the consequences of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, now in its fifth year. That is changing. Prices of many items have soared, fuel is scarce, and even domestic travel has become difficult, while anxiety and frustration among Russians are growing.
According to a BBC analysis cited by the ABC, the price of potatoes in Russia increased 167 percent between 2024 and 2026, and chocolate rose 125 percent over the same period. Katerina, a St Petersburg resident who once spray-painted anti-war slogans, said supermarkets have become a particular sore point. “Prices have risen. Utility prices have increased a lot. All of my friends lost their jobs and left the city. Some were able to leave the country,” she said. “Everyone is tired, even people who support the war are tired.”
Michael Rochlitz, an associate professor at Oxford University who studies Russia’s economy, said state propaganda remains effective at containing public anger. “On state TV they might acknowledge life has gotten tougher in Russia, but they claim things are far worse in other countries,” he told the ABC. “This is partly why there have not been many public displays of anger against Putin yet.”
Ukraine’s growing ability to strike targets over the border has come with costs at home. The Kremlin has stepped up its bombardment of Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure, Kyiv’s stocks of interceptor missiles are running low, and deaths are increasing. Still, analysts say the strikes are reshaping Russian attitudes. “As these attacks have stepped up over the past nine to 12 months, it has brought the idea home to many people that this is a long war and there is no immediate way out of it,” one analyst told the ABC.
Ukraine claims more than 30,000 Russian soldiers are being killed, wounded or going missing each month, many of them from regional areas far from Moscow and St Petersburg. Svetlana said the mood among her friends has shifted. “Some people I know used to support the war and the policies of the president. Now, if they haven’t turned 180 degrees, they have turned 90 for sure,” she said.
Author: Ukraine Desk
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