A Member Of The Russian State Duma Warned Of An Impending "social Explosion" And Called For An End To The "special Military Operation"
- 12.06.2026, 12:14
Panic is setting in among Russia's "elite."
Russia finds itself "on the brink of social unrest" due to the current government's corrupt policies and the protracted war in Ukraine, stated Vyacheslav Markhaev, a State Duma deputy from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation . “Turning to the topic of the special military operation, which I have long avoided, I am forced to state: corruption scandals are compounded by the ongoing loss of the most active and productive segment of the population due to ineffective leadership. Attacks on our cities are not stopping; their scope is expanding,” the lawmaker wrote.
According to him, “the Presidential Administration states that the goals of the denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine” no longer apply to the entire country, but only to the occupied territories. Against this backdrop, Markhaev demanded that the authorities present a “clear public plan for ending the special military operation,” warning that otherwise internal problems would only grow. “If this situation persists, social unrest and chaos will become more likely,” he noted, adding that “all responsibility for this will fall on the unaccountable government.”
Markhaev also criticized the government’s economic policy. According to him, over the past 25 years, utility rates have risen by 366%, while the public infrastructure continues to deteriorate. The lawmaker pointed out that many residents of the country, especially pensioners, are forced to spend a significant portion of their income on utility bills. At the same time, he noted the growing number of Russian billionaires amid corruption scandals and the arrests of officials. From Markhaev’s perspective, all of this indicates that the team that has led Russia for a quarter of a century has “lost touch with the people’s needs”
“What would an external enemy have done if Russia were invaded? It would have seized resources, plundered industry, hiked up tariffs, and built itself mansions. But no invasion took place—the authorities handled it themselves, more effectively than any aggressor,” Markhaev concluded.
The war in Ukraine has already surpassed World War I in duration. According to estimates by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), by early 2026 Russian troops had lost 1.2 million personnel on the battlefield, including up to 325,000 killed. Against this backdrop, Russia continues to allocate record amounts of funds to military needs: the 2026 budget allocates 12.9 trillion rubles for these purposes, or nearly 30% of all federal spending.