Burç Eruygur
22 August 2026•Update: 22 August 2026
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday that his country’s upcoming legislative elections next month will confirm the stability of the Russian state.
“I am confident that the upcoming elections will confirm the stability of the state,” Putin said in an address at the congress of his country’s ruling United Russia party.
Saying that the vote, due to be held on Sept. 18-20, will also confirm the “maturity” of Russia’s political system and his country’s ability to withstand “any external threats, blackmail, or aggression,” Putin stressed that it will also express the “shared will of millions of people and their desire to ensure Russia’s sovereignty and security.”
Putin further said that Russia is developing, launching and implementing large-scale projects to improve the quality of public administration, defense capabilities, economic growth and social development “despite all the difficulties.”
“All the new opportunities we create together must strengthen Russia’s sovereignty, security, and its position in the world,” Putin went on to say.
He emphasized that Russia will continue to hold elections at various levels throughout its territory, while also accusing Kyiv of launching increasingly “brutal and barbaric” strikes on his country as the situation on the front line in Ukraine worsens.
The vote in September will determine all 450 seats in the 9th convocation of Russia’s State Duma, the lower house of the country’s bicameral parliament.
Moscow and Kyiv have increasingly targeted each other’s logistics centers, as well as port and energy infrastructure, in recent months.
Both sides deny deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure, maintaining that their strikes are directed at military targets or facilities linked to military activities.
