Russian President Vladimir Putin is struggling to maintain his war effort on Ukraine as public support for his military dwindles, said British intelligence officials referencing leaked Kremlin documents.
The United Kingdom's Ministry of Defense (MOD) said in its latest intelligence update on Sunday that recent polling suggested that public support for Putin's alleged "special military operation" was "falling significantly."
Support for Russia's War on Ukraine
The poll data indicated that 55% of Russian citizens favor commencing peace talks with Ukraine and only 25% claim to support the continuing conflict against Kyiv. The UK MOD added that the results of the poll were constituent with a separate survey in October that showed 57% favored peace talks.
The war between Russia and Ukraine has become "increasingly tangible for many Russians" since Putin ordered the partial mobilization of reservists in September. That order came despite the efforts by Russian authorities to "enforce pervasive control of the information environment."
Furthermore, the report added that Russia is unlikely to achieve major battlefield successes in the next few months. However, on Saturday, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) issued an assessment that claimed some independent Russian polling data showed that citizens continue to support Moscow's efforts in Ukraine "despite growing weariness over the last six months," as per Newsweek.
In a November poll, which came from the Russian polling organization Levada Center, released by the U.S think tank, the organization found 74% of citizens supported the continued actions in Ukraine.
That particular poll also found 41% supported Russia moving forward with the conflict while 53% favored Russia beginning peace talks. The ISW said that the poll's results were "similar" to the Kremlin-commissioned poll.
According to the Voice of America News, the poll results come as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that capping the price of Russian seaborne oil at $60 a barrel was not an aggressive enough move to force Moscow's economy out of its funds for the invasion.
Price Cap on Russian Oil
The price cap, which was agreed to by several countries, including Australia, Britain, Canada, Japan, the United States, and the European Union, needed to be lower, said Zelensky. The official noted that with $60 a barrel, the Russian budget will get roughly $100 billion per year.
Zelensky argued that the amount of money will not only go to fund the war but also to further Russia's sponsoring of other terrorist regimes and organizations. The Ukrainian president warned that the fund will be used to destabilize the countries that are trying to avoid making big decisions.
The situation comes as the West believes that such a large lowering of the price cap could undercut the cost of Russian oil production. In a statement on Friday, U.S. National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, John Kirby, said that $60 a barrel was appropriate to balance limiting Russia's ability to profit and ensure that supply meets demand.
In a statement, sociologist Grigory Yudin said that Russians who were facing the "crumbling of their everyday lives and a sense of danger" would lead to an increase in the prospects of larger protests. They added that demonstrations do not simply happen because people think about something, but rather, because something makes protests possible, the Hindustan Times reported.
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