Kathrine Frich
Economic transparency in Russia is shrinking, according to Ukrainian intelligence officials.
Dozens of key statistical indicators have stopped being updated, while others have disappeared from public databases altogether.
Kyiv now claims the move is an attempt by the Kremlin to conceal the real state of Russia’s economy.
Data disappears
Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) says Russian authorities have stopped updating 115 statistical indicators since the end of 2025.
According to the agency, 168 statistical tables have either been removed or reduced in official data collections.
The Unified Interdepartmental Information and Statistics System reportedly no longer provides current figures for dozens of categories.
New entries are instead marked as “temporarily closed.”
The Kremlin has not publicly explained the changes.
Income and spending classified
The SVR claims that household income and expenditure data are now classified. This includes figures on public sector wages for teachers, doctors, nurses, researchers and cultural workers.
Information on social benefit payments has also reportedly been restricted.
As a result, it is no longer possible to see how much Russian households spend on essentials such as food, utilities, housing and medicine.
War and prison figures hidden
The Ukrainian intelligence service further alleges that data related to what Moscow calls its “SVO” campaign in Ukraine is no longer publicly available.
According to the SVR, figures on troop numbers and funeral costs have been removed. Media reports also indicate that data on prison populations is again being withheld.
Officials in Kyiv argue the data blackout is aimed at limiting public reaction to economic hardship.
In 2025, 31% of Russians reportedly said they did not have enough money for groceries, while 39% described the economic situation in their region as worsening.
Sources: Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine (SVR), Dialog.ua, LA.lv.
