Russia is facing a deep demographic crisis. Hundreds of villages have disappeared in the country in a year – intelligence

During 2025, at least 266 settlements disappeared in Russia, most of which were completely deserted. About reported in the Foreign Intelligence Service.

Most settlements disappeared in the Kostroma region. For the second time in a row, it became the leader in this indicator.

The second place is occupied by Novgorod region. Together, these two regions accounted for about three quarters of all liquidated settlements in 2025.

The third place was taken by Perm Krai. There, according to intelligence, not only are villages disappearing, but they are also conducting targeted resettlement of remote settlements with a small number of residents. Some small villages are being merged into larger settlements.

The intelligence noted that the elimination of settlements is carried out through legalization of decline. Regions are losing population, and the territories of the disappeared villages are being converted to economic needs.

The processes are taking place against the backdrop of Moscow's statements about a new "General Resettlement Scheme" that declares the revival of the province. In fact, according to the intelligence, the document records the extinction of the population, a large difference in living standards between the center and the villages, and the futility of life in the province.

The report emphasized that half-empty villages without healthcare, education, and jobs do not attract people. The development gap between regions and large agglomerations continues to grow.

"As a result, Russia is demonstrating systemic decline beyond a few large agglomerations: depopulation, rural extinction, and the development gap are only growing, while high-profile programs remain paper scenery to a rapidly emptying reality," the report says.

• Russian statistical agencies officially recorded a decline in industrial production in the country in November 2025, most notably in the tractor industry.
• Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the war against Ukraine got by this amount is equivalent to 24 annual budgets of the Russian Federation for higher education or 22 budgets for healthcare.