Desperate Putin tells young Russians ‘not to postpone happiness’: have babies now

Russian President Vladimir Putin urged young citizens to start families sooner rather than later, linking parenthood to national well-being and the country’s deepening demographic crisis.

A call for families

Speaking at a Kremlin meeting of the Council for the Development of State Demographic and Family Policy, Putin told attendees that “fatherhood and motherhood are a source of happiness, and there’s no need to postpone it.”

He said the government would “do everything necessary to ensure that new births do not affect the family’s quality of life.”

Putin added that raising children should elevate a family’s social standing, not increase poverty.

The president emphasized that young people should feel supported by the state and confident in their ability to raise families.

“They must sincerely seek the happiness of motherhood and fatherhood,” he said, promising that the state “will lend a hand.”

Changing values

Putin acknowledged that modern urban life and post-industrial social trends were reshaping people’s values and delaying parenthood. He urged Russians to preserve traditional ideas tied to family and childhood, calling them “things that money can’t buy.”

“The solution to demographic problems begins in each individual family,” he said. “It depends on how people perceive the world.”

Russia’s birth rate has fallen sharply in recent years, worsened by wartime uncertainty and what officials describe as a lingering “demographic hole.”

Traditional stance

Putin again underscored what he described as Russia’s “traditional values,” reiterating opposition to the LGBTI movement and the “childfree” ideology, which promotes a woman’s right not to have children.

“These are the basis of our demographic policy,” he stated.

He also called for more measures to encourage births, including expanded childcare options, assistance for low-income families, and preferential housing loans.

“Without a doubt, we cannot ignore material support,” Putin said. “All our actions are directed in this direction.”

Financial backing

The Kremlin plans to invest 37.5 billion rubles, more than $402 million, over the next three years in programs to boost birth rates.

Officials hope the funding will help reverse a population decline that has reached its worst point in 25 years.

Putin’s remarks came the same day he described new U.S. sanctions on Russian oil companies Lukoil and Rosneft as an “unfriendly act.”

The European Union also approved a fresh sanctions package against Moscow after resolving Slovakia’s objections.

This article is made and published by Kathrine Frich, which may have used AI in the preparation