Vladimir Putin doesn’t like acknowledging the problems his policies create, especially those resulting from his war of aggression against Ukraine.
So it was notable when he grudgingly admitted the success of Ukraine’s aerial barrage on July 8. “It’s completely obvious that the enemy is trying to damage the economy,” he said. “But the main thing is that they’re trying to create an atmosphere of nervousness in our society. You and I understand that this task is impossible.”
That will have been news to the millions of Russians now queuing for fuel at filling stations across the country, who are very nervous indeed that strikes on refineries mean their vehicles won’t run. The attacks have increased 11-fold in the first half of 2026 against the same period of last year, and the consequences are serious.
Putin’s propagandists will be nervous too because their task is to reassure the population. The same talking heads that once promised rapid victory and rejoiced that the fighting and destruction were strictly confined to Ukraine now find themselves urging fellow citizens not to panic and warning them to brace for a long and terrible war.
The Kremlin men and women who bristled at the description of Russia as “a gas station masquerading as a country” not so long ago are now struggling to assure citizens that Putin’s petrostate can even fulfil its gas station function. There are gasoline shortages that have led to long lines and widespread discontent, with angry citizens getting into brawls that sometimes require law enforcement’s intervention.
On Monday, the Governor of Vologda, Georgy Filimonov, urged his constituents not to succumb to panic and to stop hoarding fuel. Mere hours later, his vehicle ran out of gasoline, prompting Filimonov to hitch a ride with traffic cops.
Russian media outlets are now publishing tutorials, teaching the population how to siphon gasoline, with headlines that read, “Suck, Don’t Swallow: How to Drain Gas from a Car’s Fuel Tank.”
With the mood in Russia getting darker, state TV’s propagandists frequently draw parallels to 1917, apparently fearing a popular uprising that would sweep Putin’s regime from office.
Some propagandists are starting to realize that their fables about Russia’s war are no longer cutting it. Appearing on The Evening With Vladimir Solovyov on July 8, political scientist Sergey Mikheyev noted, “It’s extremely important to have conversations and discussions, to ask questions and receive answers, because in a situation where people see one thing out the window but hear something completely different from senior officials, this situation doesn’t simply lead to a dead end. This situation can become explosive.”
Mikheyev continued: “You have to talk to people…If there is no dialogue between those on top and those down below, there is a vacuum that gets filled with gossip, panic and mistrust…Gossip, panic and frustration spread when people aren’t getting answers to obvious questions.”
He said: “Let me remind you that in the 20th century, we’ve lost our enormous country — twice, in 1917 and 1991.”
State TV host Vladimir Solovyov takes a different approach. He constantly reiterates the need for censorship and increasingly harsh measures against those who dare to criticize the government or expose the extent of damage caused to Russia’s unprotected infrastructure by Ukraine’s retaliatory strikes.
During the July 9 edition of The Evening With Vladimir Solovyov, the host expressed his relief that school children in Russia will now undergo twice as many hours of basic military training, which will include field exercises and drone lessons.
The implications are clear: the war cannot be lost. It is existential and must be won through even greater effort.
So the war is explained as a seemingly endless fight “against Satanism,” with the Kremlin’s bullhorns blaming Europe for its alleged desire to tear Russia into pieces.
Multiple propagandists on various state TV shows are repeating the same line in unison: unless Russia wins this war, it will cease to exist.
For the most part, their suggestions are limited to urging an escalation against Ukraine and Europe, combined with censorship and growing domestic oppression.
During the July 8 broadcast of a state TV show 60 Minutes, State Duma member Konstantin Zatulin said: “Zelensky & Co. want to turn the lines at the gas stations into a modern-day version of the bread lines of 1917. This won’t happen; it will not come to be, not only because I’m convinced of our resilience, but also because of the understanding of the current situation by the majority of our country’s population.”
Grim-faced host Olga Skabeeva solemnly replied: “God willing.”
Julia Davis is a columnist for The Daily Beast and the creator of the Russian Media Monitor. She is a member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, the Screen Actors Guild, and Women in Film.
Europe’s Edge is CEPA’s online journal covering critical topics on the foreign policy docket across Europe and North America. All opinions expressed on Europe’s Edge are those of the author alone and may not represent those of the institutions they represent or the Center for European Policy Analysis. CEPA maintains a strict intellectual independence policy across all its projects and publications.
