Donald Trump’s statements about a possible end to the war did little to reassure Russian users about the consistency of his position. Discussions in regional VK and Telegram communities revealed distrust of the US president, while the drone attack on Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast prompted criticism of the authorities over inadequate infrastructure protection, inaccessible shelters and the downplaying of the consequences.

Other topics covered in the monitoring include possible Starlink restrictions affecting Ukraine, Russian users’ expectations of closer ties with the United States, and reactions to outages at Yandex and Sber. The report also examines discussions about referring women who do not plan to have children to psychologists, Putin’s statements on continuing the war, and everyday problems in Russian regions.

The monitoring covers 12-18 October 2026 and is based on an analysis of regional communities on VKontakte and Telegram.