Vladimir Putin inaugurated the ninth legislature of the State Duma —the lower house of the Russian Parliament— on Wednesday with a clear call to continue the war against Ukraine, demanding that the new deputies put forth their utmost effort to achieve military victory.
You are called to pay special attention to matters of state importance, such as strengthening the country's defense and doing everything for our victory, stated the leader from the parliamentary podium according to EFE.
The inaugural session takes place ten days after legislative elections held between September 18 and 20, in which the ruling party United Russia obtained between 349 and 355 of the 450 seats, securing a constitutional majority.
The elections were reported as fraudulent by international observers and opposition leaders, who pointed out the lack of real competition and multiple irregularities, according to a report by Infobae.
Putin had turned those elections into an implicit endorsement of the continuation of the invasion, and now he is transferring that alleged popular mandate to the new chamber, despite the enormous strain that the war imposes on Russia.
On a human level, the figures are devastating. The Ukrainian General Staff reported over 1.5 million Russian casualties —including dead, wounded, missing, and captured— as of September 11, and British intelligence confirmed that Russia had surpassed half a million soldiers killed in combat.
A journalistic investigation identified at least 258,000 deceased Russian soldiers by name, a figure that only represents the individually documented cases.
Only in July, Russia recorded 42,860 casualties in a single month, the worst monthly record at that point since the start of the invasion in February 2022.
The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky revealed on Tuesday that Russia had initiated a new covert mobilization following the elections, indicating that the Kremlin urgently needs to replenish its troops.
In the economic front, the outlook is no less grim. According to an analysis by El País, Russian spending on defense, security, and espionage now accounts for nearly half of the total public budget, with a 30% increase just in the first half of 2026.
The revised fiscal deficit for this year amounts to 7.3 trillion rubles, equivalent to 3.2% of GDP, while the Russian Central Bank has lowered the growth forecast to between 0% and 1%, with projected inflation ranging from 6% to 7%.
Ukraine, for its part, has systematically struck Russian energy infrastructure: it attacked 24 out of the 34 major refineries in the country between January and July, disabling more than 45% of refining capacity.
On September 20 —the same day as the last Russian election day— a massive drone attack completely paralyzed the Kapotnia refinery in Moscow, the largest in the capital.
Russian oil revenues fell by 45.4% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, and the country's sovereign fund plummeted from 6.5% to 1.8% of GDP since the beginning of the invasion.
Putin has repeatedly rejected any proposals for a ceasefire or direct negotiations with Ukraine in 2026, that, according to reports, is jeopardizing Russia's economic and human future.
Related videos:
Filed under: