Putin Expands FSB Control as Russian War Support Falls 19 Points

2 articles · Updated · Yahoo! Voices · Aug 7

Sources close to the Kremlin said Putin is increasingly relying on the FSB to keep control of Russia, sidelining more moderate, economically focused advisers as the Ukraine war worsens.
A July Levada Center survey showed support for the war at 50%, down 19 points from a year earlier, after Ukrainian strikes hit Russian energy and logistics sites and brought drones and smoke closer to daily life.
The shift is raising fears of deeper repression among elites and the middle class, with Bloomberg sources pointing to terrorism charges against Telegram founder Pavel Durov as an early sign.
Sergei Kiriyenko and other business- and society-minded officials are losing influence as security hardliners gain ground, reinforcing what one Moscow analyst called the FSB's role as Russia's new 'management company.'