The Kremlin believes internet outages did not affect the economic downturn
Internet shutdowns are not a significant cause of Russia's economic downturn, according to Maxim Oreshkin, former head of the Ministry of Economic Development and current deputy head of the presidential administration. He stated that other factors are much more significant: resource and labor shortages, slow adoption of new technologies, and the need for structural changes: "The economic situation is very difficult. The figures we see regarding negative economic dynamics are not related to this factor [internet shutdowns]." Vladimir Putin previously attributed the decline in Russia's GDP to long holidays and "seasonal factors," citing Ministry of Economic Development data that showed a 1.8% overall economic decline in the first two months of 2026. He demanded "detailed reports" on the economic situation, asking "why the trajectory of macroeconomic indicators is below expectations." In late March, The Bell, citing Kommersant and the Internet Protection Society, estimated the losses for companies in Moscow alone to be between 0.6 and 1 billion rubles for each day without mobile internet, based on the share of the digital economy in gross regional product and the scale of restrictions. A complete internet shutdown in Moscow would cause damage of about 4.8 billion rubles per day. Earlier, Nova-Europe presented five new figures confirming the slowdown of the Russian economy and the decline in citizens' incomes. These figures, in particular, indicate that Russians have less and less money – they have significantly reduced consumer activity and find it harder to service their consumer loans.
