Novosibirsk hastily repaved its roads and planted new lawns before Putin’s visit. In his last two stops, gas prices mysteriously dropped when he arrived — and rose again once he left.
Vladimir Putin traveled to Novosibirsk after a working visit to Buryatia, the Kremlin press pool reported.
The visit’s agenda focused on regional issues as well as scientific and technological development, Russia’s state news agency Tass said.
Local media in Novosibirsk reported that preparations for Putin’s visit had begun well in advance, with crews hastily repaving asphalt in the city center, laying new lawns, and repairing sidewalks and building facades.
Putin last visited the Novosibirsk region in 2018.
Novosibirsk marks the fifth city Putin has visited in the past two and a half weeks, not counting Moscow and St. Petersburg — he previously traveled to Kazan, Irkutsk, Omsk, Krasnoyarsk, and Ulan-Ude. Before that stretch, he had rarely traveled to Russia’s regions for several months.
Putin’s visits to Irkutsk and Krasnoyarsk each coincided with a temporary drop in gasoline prices at local gas stations. Prices rose again once he left.
A European intelligence report has suggested that Putin cut back on regional travel out of fear of an assassination attempt. In June, the Russian outlet Faridaily reported that Putin had begun appearing in public more often amid falling approval ratings.
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