Russia is suffering from an “epidemic” of erectile dysfunction, a Moscow doctor who risked jail for criticising the invasion of Ukraine has revealed.
Putin’s war is leaving Russians too eager to have children, Professor Igor Gundarov has said.
He added that the dictator is “crazy” and “does not even understand what he is saying” as he hides the real terrible figures of losses in the war.
The expert’s harsh assessment came at a round table discussion at Moscow City Hall.
Such criticism of Putin and the war is exceptionally rare, as it carries the risk of draconian prison sentences.
Putin’s war is leaving Russians too eager to have children, says Professor Igor Gundarov (pictured)
Gundarov said: “We have an epidemic of psychogenic infertility, erectile dysfunction. Why is there an epidemic of infertility? People live like in a zoo, in hopeless longing, fear… that is the price we are willing to pay for success in war…”
“Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin) talks very well, but our demographics are really terrible,” said Gundarov, scientific director of the Research Institute of Public Health and Health Management at the Sechenov Medical Academy in Moscow.
‘They blame everything on women and (Putin) doesn’t even understand what he’s saying.
“They say that women don’t want to give birth because the standard of living has risen… they need to study, have a career, and so they put it off until they are 30, and then they can’t afford it.”
This “crazy” reasoning for the population decline is nonsense, he said.
She explained: ‘It’s not like that, they do want to give birth. (We have an) epidemic of psychogenic infertility, erectile dysfunction.
“Why is there an epidemic of infertility? People live like in a zoo, with hopeless longings, fear… that is the price we are willing to pay for success in war…”
Putin’s invasion had clear demographic consequences due to the high rate of casualties, which have been hidden from ordinary Russians, he warned.
“We are going to conquer kyiv, the price here is demographic,” he said.
“Why don’t they tell us the death toll? Who are they hiding it from? Everyone knows every soldier, so who are they hiding it from? Us…?”
He spoke of a rising mortality rate among young people, which has increased by 40 to 50 percent.
“That’s why abortions have fallen, there is no one to conceive, because children are not made with a finger,” says Gundarov, 77, mocking Putin’s regime.
Gundarov also asked: “Why don’t they tell us the number of dead? Who are they hiding it from?”
‘All those who have children… end up (dead) in the steppes near Kherson (in Ukraine) among the tall grass.’
He called for the creation of an official body to address Russia’s demographic crisis in a “mature” manner. “And Putin should not be invited, he is useless anyway,” he said.
Life expectancy for men in Russia was already poor before the war: 67.5 years, while that of women was 77.5.
The war has caused hundreds of thousands of casualties among Russians, especially among young men. This not only reduces the male population, but also affects birth rates.