Newsweek: Putin Faces A Dilemma
- 7.08.2026, 8:16
Ukraine is putting the Kremlin on "election clock."
With six weeks to go before Russia’s first parliamentary elections, Vladimir Putin—who is trying to salvage his standing among Russians by launching attacks on Kyiv—faces a dilemma. This is reported by Newsweek.
His party, United Russia, is unlikely to risk losing: the Russian president’s long-standing cultivation of authoritarian rule means that his party members do not need to campaign too hard.
“But even a quasi-dictator presiding over a rigged election needs to be cautious, because Ukraine’s military campaign has recently scored several significant victories,” the article states.
It is noted that Kyiv’s effective campaign of long-range strikes against oil refineries, energy infrastructure, and warehouses belonging to Wildberries, Russia’s largest e-commerce company, has led to a decline in revenue and a severe fuel shortage within the country. The front line may be holding steady, but the Ukrainian armed forces are eliminating Russian soldiers at an alarming rate.
According to journalists, most of the options available to Putin to resolve these problems would be extremely unpopular and risky in the run-up to the State Duma elections. But the longer he tries to shield Russian society from the consequences of the war, the stronger Kyiv’s position becomes.
The possibility of mobilization in Russia
The Ukrainian Unmanned Systems Forces stated that the Russian army’s losses from December through April exceeded the number of new recruits, while Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said that in the first half of 2026, approximately 200,000 people allegedly signed contracts with the Ministry of Defense, which more than meets the need for manpower. The article states:
“In any case, months of costly fighting have not led to a decisive strategic breakthrough. This has led to rumors that, four years after the first mobilization, another major mobilization is being prepared.”
Meanwhile, Russian authorities are using the “carrot” rather than the “stick” to try to boost conscription numbers.
On July 22, the State Duma removed 11 more criminal offenses from the list of crimes that prevent defendants and convicts from signing military contracts.
Regional authorities are also raising the cap on one-time bonus payments for those wishing to enlist, and the Ministry of Defense has launched recruitment campaigns at Russian universities.
“An autocrat obsessed with demonstrating impressive national unity during nationwide elections cannot risk creating lines of men of draft age just weeks before Election Day through a hasty military mobilization,” the publication writes.
Explosions in Russia continue
A recent series of Ukrainian attacks on facilities belonging to Russia’s equivalent of Amazon has rightly made global headlines.
It is noted that Ukraine’s relentless destruction of Russian oil refineries and power plants is causing Putin the greatest headache.
Since June, most Russian regions have been grappling with a well-documented fuel shortage; motorists are facing hours-long lines, rationing of gasoline and diesel fuel, and, of course, high prices at gas stations.
The damage is also affecting export figures; according to data from the Kyiv School of Economics’ oil tracker, exports of petroleum products from Russia fell to a record low of 1.6 million barrels per day in June.
It is noted that for members of Putin’s party, these factors are unlikely to significantly affect their popularity in the run-up to September.
Currently, “United Russia” controls more than 300 seats in the 450-seat Duma, which significantly exceeds the number needed to pass laws without majority support. Putin can easily afford to lose a few seats, and this will in no way affect his ability to govern the country. The article states:
“But in a country where elections have long been a foregone conclusion, there are still ways to gauge how popular the ruling party is—beyond what it wants you to believe.”
According to journalists, “United Russia” will secure a victory in September, accompanied by carefully orchestrated displays of patriotic enthusiasm and a result sufficient to keep Putin’s political machine running.