New Analysis Reveals Nearly 45% of Putins 2025 Decrees Are Classified

According to an analysis by the exiled investigative outlet Vyorstka published on Tuesday, approximately 45% of over 1,000 executive orders signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2025 were never disclosed to the public.

The investigation revealed that 449 out of at least 1,010 decrees were designated as classified on the official Russian government portal for legal acts last year, resulting in a percentage of 44.5%.

Although this figure shows a 3.4-point increase compared to 2024, the current level of secrecy is still marginally lower than the record highs observed during the initial two years of Russia’s comprehensive invasion of Ukraine.

Of the 561 decrees that were made public, Vyorstka indicated that 52 were focused on bestowing honorary titles upon particular military units.

The outlet highlighted that confidential decrees are generally utilized for highly sensitive administrative decisions, such as military commendations for active combatants or posthumous honors, as well as pardons for convicted individuals who are conscripted into the armed forces.

In at least one instance, the BBC’s Russian service reported that Putin approved a secret decree in 2006 which conferred the Medal of the Order “For Merit to the Fatherland” I class upon the late leader of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin.