Putin's rating reportedly drops to record low amid Ukrainian incursion into Kursk Oblast

Russian leader Vladimir Putin's approval and trust rating has plummeted to a record low amid the Kursk operation by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, according to a survey conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Research Centre.

Source: Meduza, a Latvia-based Russian media outlet, with reference to the Agentstvo media outlet

Details: Meduza reported that the Russian Public Opinion Research Centre website states that Putin's approval rating for the week of 12-18 August fell by 3.5% compared to the previous week and reached 73.6%.

The level of trust in Putin decreased by 2.6% to 78.2% over the same period. This is the sharpest drop since the beginning of Russia's war against Ukraine.

Russian publications also note that, according to the Russian Public Opinion Research Centre, this is a record drop in both indicators since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops in February 2022.

During the war, Putin's approval rating dropped below 73.6% in the summer and autumn of 2023, after the uprising of Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin. 

At the same time, Putin's trust rating has dropped below 78% twice during the war – against the backdrop of mobilisation in the autumn and winter of 2022-2023 and in the summer and autumn of 2023, after Prigozhin's rebellion. In addition, sociologists recorded the lowest value of the rating (76.7%) in the week from 31 July to 6 August 2023.

Background:

• The Armed Forces of Ukraine crossed the Russian-Ukrainian border near the city of Sudzha in Kursk Oblast on 6 August 2024.
• The Armed Forces of Ukraine had reportedly taken control of the village of Poroz in Belgorod Oblast on 10 August. A counterterrorism operation regime was implemented, including increased security, movement restrictions, document checks, and phone monitoring in Russias’s Bryansk, Kursk, and Belgorod oblasts.
• The Ukrainian authorities confirmed the participation of the Armed Forces in a special operation in the territory of Kursk Oblast on 12 August for the first time.

Read more on this topic: Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi's raid: how the Ukrainian offensive in Russia's Kursk Oblast is progressing and what to expect next

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