Russia's war sacrifices: Tanks over healthcare amid rising costs
Russian opposition politician Leonid Volkov spoke on the program "The World According to Poland" about how the ongoing three-year war has affected the daily lives of Russians. Volkov emphasized that if the authorities have to choose between building a new tank or purchasing medical equipment like an ultrasound machine or an MRI, they always prefer to buy a tank. Nonetheless, most Russians still support Putin.
According to March surveys by the Levada Center, an independent public opinion research center, the majority of Russians support Putin and remain optimistic about the future, believing the country is heading in the right direction. Does this mean that Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has not significantly impacted the daily lives of Russians?
The Anti-Corruption Foundation's research from early 2025 indicates that the financial situation of nearly one-third of Russians has worsened. A staggering 96 percent of Russians have noticed rising prices in stores. Furthermore, inflation has forced 35 percent of citizens to change their eating habits, reports "Fakt."
Interestingly, only 8 percent of respondents attribute this situation to Vladimir Putin.
Leonid Volkov, an associate of Alexei Navalny living in exile in Lithuania, told "Fakt" that Russia is a very diverse country, which makes it challenging to describe a "typical Russian." For example, Moscow is 13 times wealthier than the average Russian city. Nevertheless, some nationwide changes can currently be observed.
For example, the impact of the war on healthcare. People feel terrible about this because all the funds are allocated to the war. If the authorities have to choose between building a new tank or purchasing medical equipment like an ultrasound machine or an MRI, they always prefer to buy a tank, Volkov emphasized.
The oppositionist also noted that the situation in Russian hospitals has deteriorated, and the waiting time for medical tests has significantly increased. "It used to take a week to schedule an ultrasound. Now it's about two months simply because there is no more medical equipment," explained the guest on the program "The World According to Poland."
Problems in civil aviation and the real estate market
Serious issues have also arisen in civil aviation, heavily impacted by sanctions. Volkov explained that Russia has to "cannibalize" its fleet of Boeings and Airbuses, and domestic Sukhoi Superjet planes are of low quality and frequently break down. This results in numerous delays and flight cancellations, further complicating the situation.
Problems are also visible in the real estate market. Since Russians are not volunteering for the army, the authorities — as an incentive — are increasing the pay. To achieve this, as Volkov pointed out, they are printing a lot of money, which has raised the central bank's interest rate to 21 percent.
Currently, mortgage interest rates are about 30 percent, which has obviously devastated the real estate market and is a severe crisis in the Russian economy, noted Volkov.
Though Russia is facing a multitude of problems, the oppositionist has no illusions. As he emphasized, Russia is a fascist dictatorship where all decisions are made by Vladimir Putin. According to Volkov, the dictator is under the belief that he "can continue leadership for another 15 years."
