In recent weeks, the tone of public debate in russia has moved beyond merely punishing those who criticise the full-scale military invasion of Ukraine towards mandating citizens to actively make sacrifices in support of the war effort, the UK Defense Intelligence reports.
Russian state-backed media and business groups have petitioned the Economic Ministry to authorise a six-day week for workers in the face of the economic demands of the war, apparently without additional pay.
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![Maryinka, Donetsk region, May 2023 Defense Express From Criticism to Compulsion: the Shifting Tone of Public Debate in Russia Amidst the Wa](/media/contentimages/e1664731e1a1ca30.jpg)
On May 21, 2023, leading russian propagandist Margarita Simonyan mooted that citizens should work for two extra hours in munitions factories each day, after their regular jobs.
![The 155mm ammunition Defense Express From Criticism to Compulsion: the Shifting Tone of Public Debate in Russia Amidst the Wa](/media/contentimages/d0d64731ecc48ffb.jpg)
According to the UK Defense Intelligence, the evolving tone of the conversations clearly echoes a Soviet-style sense of societal compulsion. It also highlights how the leadership highly likely ident economic performance as a decisive factor in winning the war.
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