2018 has been a difficult year for the Kremlin and Putin. This year ordinary Russians have taken to the streets in demonstration nearly twice as many times as in the previous year. This is evidence that the Russian people are willing to actively criticise poor policies introduced by the Kremlin.

Of the some 2,500 demonstrations this year nearly half were in protest of the pension reforms. The reforms, which see the retirement age Russian men surpass that of the average life expectancy, has led to a five-year low in Putin’s public approval ratings.

The bulk of these demonstrations took place in mid September. The Kremlin response was brutal, with thousands of arrests made. Law enforcement agencies have been changing laws to make it easier to detain people attending even state-sanctioned demonstrations. This was the case over the weekend, where democracy activists as young as 14 were detained and assaulted by police officers.

Russians are starting to realise that many of the Kremlin policies run contrary to the interests of the people they govern. It is unlikely that the Kremlin is going to change its kleptocratic approach to state governance, which may result in growing unrest on the streets of Russia.