Does Putin fear Russians? Kremlin leader sets record-long pause in trips across Russia
Photo: Vladimir Putin is afraid to leave his bunker (Getty Images)
Vladimir Putin last visited a Russian region on November 6, 2025, when he traveled to Samara. Since then, the Kremlin leader has not left the regions where his main residences are located.
According to journalists, the current pause has already reached 196 days, making it the longest, even compared to the COVID-19 pandemic period.
From Moscow to Saint Petersburg
Since the beginning of 2026, most of Putin’s public appearances have taken place in the Kremlin, Novo-Ogaryovo, or within Moscow and Saint Petersburg. One of his first public engagements in 2026 was a closed visit to a Christmas service at a church on the premises of the GRU Senezh base in the Moscow region.
He has also visited students at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT) in Dolgoprudny and taken part in events marking the anniversary of the lifting of the Leningrad blockade. At the same time, the ceremony in Saint Petersburg was held without an audience for the first time.
Journalists suggest that the prolonged avoidance of travel may be linked to Putin’s concerns about his personal security. At the end of 2025, Russian authorities claimed there had been an alleged attempt to attack Putin’s residence on Lake Valdai, although Western leaders, including Donald Trump, questioned the credibility of these claims.
New record
Even during the pandemic, the maximum break in Putin’s trips was 132 days, while before the full-scale war in Ukraine, such intervals usually did not exceed 45 days.
It was previously reported that during his visit to Beijing, Putin once again tried to persuade Xi Jinping to support the construction of the Power of Siberia-2 gas pipeline.
It was also reported that the Kremlin has intensified information attacks against German Chancellor Friedrich Merz over Ukraine support.
