From September 20 to 22, Russia will hold voting in elections for State Duma deputies. Against that backdrop, sources told Vedomosti that United Russia has decided to temporarily step back from new restrictive initiatives and shift to a more positive agenda.
Because of this, lawmakers from the ruling party have begun publicly criticizing restrictions they had previously promoted or supported. As Agentstvo noted, United Russia deputies have stopped actively backing the labeling of works mentioning drugs, a video game ban, and regulation of artificial intelligence.
Measures that may follow the vote
According to sources cited by RBC, after the elections authorities may introduce a charge for using more than 15 GB of international traffic per month. The measure had originally been planned for May-June, but was later postponed for several months.
The Finance Ministry also said the start of a technology levy on phones, laptops and other electronics had been moved from September 1 to December 1. The measure is expected to cause a sharp increase in gadget prices. As previously reported, the money is supposed to fund production of microchips needed for weapons manufacturing, while end consumers will bear the cost.
Sources cited by The Washington Post said the Kremlin could decide on a new mobilization after the parliamentary elections. At the same time, there is still no reliable confirmation that this will happen. An anonymous local human rights advocate in annexed Crimea told Krym.Realii that reservists are being urged to sign contracts with the warning that a new wave of mobilization may be announced after the September vote.
In addition, the second reading of a bill that would allow land to be removed from specially protected natural areas for construction of federal facilities has been postponed until at least autumn. Elena Panova, head of staff of the Duma ecology committee, told Vedomosti this was the case.
Restrictions already softened
On the eve of the elections, the government also softened its stance on several restrictive measures. According to Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Grigorenko, instead of an automatic ban on calls from abroad, Russians will be allowed to activate such a restriction themselves. The authorities also dropped the idea of requiring citizens to notify mobile operators when handing a SIM card to a child.