Terrified Russia: Antidepressant sales surge as military mobilisation brings reality of Ukraine war home – seeing 400,000 flee the country to avoid conscription.. but there’s no sign of Putin toppling yet, Western officials reveal
- Sales of antidepressants in Russia rose 70 per cent this year, it has been revealed
- ‘Terrified’ Russians are feeling the effects of Putin’s ‘catastrophic’ war in Ukraine
- 400,000 have fled country since he began conscripting people into the military
- Despite that, there is no hint that Putin will be replaced – at least in short term
Antidepressant sales in Russia have skyrocketed as the miserable reality of Putin’s war in Ukraine finally dawns on the public, Western officials have said.
Russians spent 70 per cent more on the pills in the first eight months of this year compared to last, even though they spent much of 2021 in Covid lockdowns, figures have shown.
‘Russians feel frightened’ as the ‘catastrophic error’ of Putin’s invasion – including conscription and a tanking economy – begin to hit people’s lives, the officials added.
That is underlined by the fact that at least 400,000 have fled since Putin announced he would begin drafting people into the army in September, significantly more than the 300,000 he added to his ranks.
Vladimir Putin is facing increasing dissent at home as miserable reality of his war dawns but there is no prospect of him being replaced, Western officials have said
Despite that, officials say there is no sign that Putin has decided to change course in Ukraine and no sign that anyone is preparing to replace him.
Russia is now into its ninth month of fighting in Ukraine and has failed to achieve any of the military objectives set by Putin at the start of the war.
The Kremlin thought it was getting involved in an easy conflict that would take days to resolve and had ‘no Plan B’ for what to do if the war went awry, officials said.
‘They still don’t have Plan B,’ the officials added.
That has led to growing dissent both within the Russian population and the elite close to Putin, who are increasingly willing to voice that discontent in public.
Russians are not in favour of the war, the officials said, and elites are increasingly worried about the cost to their businesses and also the prospect that their children may be called to fight on the frontlines.
That has led to the likes of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Wagner boss dubbed ‘Putin’s chef’, to publicly criticise the way the war is being run – though not Putin himself.
Officials added there is ‘no likely prospect of a change of leadership’ in Russia in the near-term – though did flag elections due in 2024 as a moment of likely tension.
More to follow…
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