Russia's birth rate slides to lowest in quarter century in 2024

(Reuters) - Russia recorded its lowest birth rate since 1999 in the first six months of this year, according to official data published on Monday, with births in June below 100,000, marking their first monthly decline.

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT

The conjuncture of declining births and rising mortality has led to a decrease in Russia's population, posing an issue for the Kremlin as it wages a protracted war in Ukraine, which Moscow launched with a full-scale invasion in 2022.

The Kremlin in July called Russia's low birth rates a disaster for the country.

BY THE NUMBERS

According to data published by the statistics service Rosstat, 599,600 children were born in Russia in the first half of 2024, which is 16,000 fewer than in the same period in 2023 and the lowest since 1999.

In June, the number of newborns fell 6%, to 98,600, which is the first time the number fell below 100,000, Russian media reported.

Russia's natural decline of population accelerated this year, with 325,100 deaths recorded between January and June, or 49,000 more than in the corresponding period of last year.

The population decline was somewhat offset by 20.1% growth in migrants in January-June, data showed.

KEY QUOTES

"This is catastrophic for the future of the nation," Kremlin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said in July, according to Russian state news agencies.

Nina Ostanina, the head of the Committee for the Protection of Families at the Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, told the state RIA news agency that a "special demographic operation" is needed to improve the birth rate.

"We must organise ourselves and conduct another special operation," Ostanina said. "Just like a special military operation - a special demographic operation."

Moscow calls its actions in Ukraine "a special military operation," while Kyiv and its allies call it an unprovoked aggression to grab land.

(Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Sonali Paul)