The Kremlin has banned the media from reporting on the decline in Putin's approval ratings

The Russian presidential administration has instructed state-run and pro-government media not to report on the decline in Vladimir Putin’s approval ratings.

Meduza reported this, citing a source in the pro-government media.

According to the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion, Putin’s approval rating fell by another 1.1 percentage points over the week—to 65.6%, marking a new low since the start of the full-scale war.

It is noted that the figure has been falling almost continuously since the beginning of the year and has lost more than 12 points overall. The last time such a trend was recorded was in 2018 following the announcement of pension reform.

According to the source, the Kremlin recommended not citing these figures in publications, but instead using other sociological indicators or not mentioning the rating at all.

Russian state polling agencies continue to record a decline in support for President Vladimir Putin amid the blocking of Telegram, restrictions on VPNs, and internet outages across the country.