Russian President Vladimir Putin has launched a controversial initiative aimed at combating the nation’s declining birth rate by encouraging citizens to engage in intimacy during work breaks, according to Metro.co.uk. The move is part of a broader strategy to counter the country’s shrinking population, which has been exacerbated by factors such as emigration and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
“The preservation of the Russian people is our highest national priority,” Putin stated, as reported by Metro. “The fate of Russia… depends on how many of us there will be. It is a question of national importance.”
Russia’s current fertility rate stands at approximately 1.5 children per woman, significantly below the 2.1 needed for population stability. To address this, the government has rolled out various initiatives, including free fertility screenings for women in Moscow and financial incentives for new mothers. In the Chelyabinsk region, young women are being offered £8,500 for their first child.
Russian Health Minister Dr Yevgeny Shestopalov expressed support for the policy, dismissing concerns about busy work schedules as a barrier to family planning. “You can have children during breaks,” Shestopalov said, emphasizing that work should not interfere with reproduction.
Additionally, proposals from political figures like MP Tatyana Butskaya include tracking employee birth rates to encourage more frequent childbearing. Other measures include tightening abortion access and raising divorce fees to promote family growth.
The Kremlin has also been pushing for women to start having children at younger ages, with some officials like Anna Kuznetsova and Zhanna Ryabtseva advocating for early motherhood to encourage larger families.
Military expansion amid population concerns
As part of his broader national security efforts, President Putin has also ordered a major expansion of Russia’s military forces. The plan involves increasing the army’s personnel by 180,000, bringing the total to 2.38 million troops, with 1.5 million active personnel. This would position Russia’s military as the second largest in the world, trailing only China.
This military expansion follows previous increases since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The growing force is seen as a response to ongoing global conflicts and a strategic move to safeguard Russia’s national security in the face of heavy losses during the conflict.
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