Russian officials are panicking about the possible “extinction” of the country – but not because of anything related to Ukraine war.

According to a new report from Kremlin-backed Russian news outlet Moskovskij Komsomolets, a new scheme launched on September 1 aims to increase the birth rate in certain cities because the demographic of the country has become “alarming”. The current birth rate in Russia is around 1.5 births per every woman in the country, placing it 190th in the world. …

Russia’s current population currently stands at 143 million – although this figure was released pre-war, and in 2021. Shockingly, Krupnov expects this figure to half within the next 70 years.

[That fertility rate seems like a very clear sign of hopelessness in the population. A country that sees no hope in the future are not likely to contribute to building that future. When the impact of the massive losses in the war get added to this trend, it will indeed be calamitous. Will it move people to change the status quo? There aren’t many encouraging signs … — Ed]