MOSCOW (AP) — Facing protests and a noticeable dip in his approval ratings, President Vladimir Putin made rare concessions Wednesday to an unpopular pension reform package that increased the retirement age for Russians.

The televised address marked an extraordinary occasion when Putin apparently felt compelled to explain a major policy decision to the public, reflecting the contentious nature of the retirement reforms.

The general idea of increasing the retirement age was justified because of Russia's economy and demographic trends and "cannot be put off any longer," Putin said.

Without such a move, Russia's pension system "would crack and eventually collapse," he said, adding: "I'm asking you to be understanding of this."

In softening the plan, he said the new retirement age for women will be raised only to 60 from the current 55, instead of the previous government proposal to increase it to 63.

Left unchanged, however, was increasing the retirement age for men from 60 to 65.

Russia's economy has been hobbled in recent years by falling oil prices and Western sanctions over the 2014 annexation of Crimea. The country also faces a demographic crisis in the coming years as a result of the extremely low birth rates that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The retirement age is supposed to be raised gradually — by one year every year over the next five years.

The softening of the proposal for women, to five years instead of eight, was because of what Putin called the important role women play in Russian society.

"In our country, we treat women in a special, caring way," he said.

The government's plan to raise the retirement age initially was announced by the government in June on the first day of the World Cup in Russia, when the attention of most of the country was focused on soccer.

Putin has refrained from commenting on the subject for weeks, while a widespread outcry over the move began emerging. Alexei Navalny, one of Putin's biggest opponents, has called for nationwide demonstrations about it on Sept. 9, but on Monday, he was jailed for 30 days over an unsanctioned protest seven months earlier.

The pension proposals have affected Putin's approval ratings, which have dropped from 80 percent to under 70 percent — his lowest since before the Crimea annexation.

Older Russians have seen their pensions rise steadily under Putin and have been among his staunchest supporters, enjoying the stability they believe he has brought to the economy. But many of those who oppose an increase in the retirement age question whether they would live long enough to claim their money.

In Russia, the average life expectancy is 67 for men and 78 for women.

Though the proposed changes bring Russia into line with most other countries, many families, especially in rural areas and small towns, are worried that their household income will take a serious hit at a time when the young often struggle to find a stable job.

"This reform will hit hard people in provincial towns and in villages," said Arseny Radin, a Moscow-based engineer originally from the Vladimir region about 200 kilometers (120 miles) northeast of the capital.

Radin said his father, who would be retiring in a few years if not for the planned reforms, must travel to Moscow for work "because there are no jobs in provincial towns."

Asked about Putin's proposal to incentivize employers to hire older workers, Radin said: "What jobs are we talking about and what jobs are going to be kept for those people who are close to the retirement age?"

In his speech, Putin voiced other suggestions aimed at softening the blow, including an idea to keep benefits such as tax breaks for seniors even before they reach retirement age.

Although Putin is famous for his annual marathon call-in TV shows in which he talks directly to ordinary Russians via video link, he rarely gives televised speeches to the nation. For example, he did not give a nationally televised address in 2014 when Russia moved to send troops to Crimea and eventually annex the territory from Ukraine.

For years, Putin has avoided discussing the idea of raising the pension age, a move long advocated by his economic advisers.

Sergei Kosov, a 71-year-old Muscovite who watched Putin's televised address, said the reform "has long been overdue even though not everyone agrees."

Speaking at a city-organized activities club for seniors, Kosov called it "a sincere account of the country's needs," even though he thought the government would not be forced to take the action if it was more effective in fighting corruption.

Alexei Kudrin, chairman of the Audit Chamber and one of the earliest proponents of the reform, welcomed Putin's proposals, calling them "well-thought out and crucial for the nation to be able to achieve its goals."

The Communist Party, one of the main opponents of the reform, said Putin should have made more concessions.

"This bill cannot be improved, in my opinion," party leader Gennady Zyuganov told the Tass news agency, adding that the party is collecting signatures necessary to try to force a national referendum.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>MOSCOW—Russian President Vladimir Putin took to national TV on Wednesday with a promise to soften the government’s plan to raise the retirement age, even as he sought to convince Russians that painful changes remain necessary to put the economy on more solid footing. The unusual televised address to the nation was a sign that despite Putin’s dominance over Russian politics, the Kremlin fears the consequences of public discontent. Putin repeatedly referred to the audience as his “dear friends” and ended with: “I ask for your understanding.”

The original proposal to overhaul the pension system, first announced by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev just as the soccer World Cup kicked off here in June, would have raised the retirement age to 65 from 60 for men and to 63 from 55 for women. But polls showed the move was deeply unpopular, and it sparked protests across the country. In Wednesday’s address, Putin said he would move to reduce the new retirement age for women to 60. “We’re not going to let that happen, of course,” Putin said, referring to the proposed eight-year increase for women. “In our country, there is a special, caring attitude to women.”

At the same time, Putin used his half-hour-long remarks to argue that Russia’s low birthrate and growing life expectancy meant that the country’s pension system — largely unchanged from Soviet times — needs to evolve. It was a rare case in which Putin — despite his vast influence on politics, the security apparatus and the news media — turned directly to the public to defend an unpopular measure. It was a rare case in which Putin — despite his vast influence on politics, the security apparatus and the news media — turned directly to the public to defend an unpopular measure. And it underscored the challenges that Russia’s lackluster economic growth, undermined further by Western sanctions, poses to Putin’s rule. “It’s natural that all of this is perceived painfully by many people. I understand this well and share this concern,” Putin said, speaking directly to the camera from a wood-paneled office, flanked by Russian flags, a large phone and a leather binder.

After describing what he said would be the unsustainable costs of keeping the retirement age unchanged, he went on: “A lack of action now or taking various cosmetic measures would be irresponsible and dishonest with respect both to our country and our children.” Putin’s approval ratings dropped to 67 per cent in July from 79 per cent in May, according to the independent Levada Center. Almost 90 per cent of Russians opposed the pension overhaul, the pollster found. Opposition politicians seized on the plan to galvanize their supporters.

Activist Alexei Navalny, who called for nationwide protests coinciding with Russian regional elections Sept. 9, was sentenced to 30 days in jail on Monday. Analysts said the move to put Navalny behind bars, as punishment for his role in organizing protests in January, appeared designed to keep the prominent opposition leader off the streets for the demonstrations opposing the pension overhaul. The backlash against the pension plan illustrated that managing Russia’s shaky economy represents more treacherous ground for Putin at home than does his foreign policy. The annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in 2014 and the ensuing conflict with the West have allowed Putin to position himself as a defender of the Russian people who is above the fray of daily politics. But the move to lower the retirement age suddenly brought the public’s focus back to Russia’s domestic malaise — and Putin’s approval rating dropped to a level last seen just before the annexation of Crimea. Putin has tried to cast himself “as a father of the nation,” said Andrei Kolesnikov, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Moscow Center think tank. “Because of the pension reform, he stopped being only a symbol. People believed that he also carried responsibility for a wrong decision.”</s>MOSCOW -- Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday scaled back plans to lift women's retirement age by eight years to 63 as he offered concessions to a package of pension reforms that have hit his approval ratings. While Putin said the general thrust of the policy was justified given Russia's wider economic and demographic backdrop, he did row back on the planned retirement age for women.

In a rare televised address, Putin said the new retirement age for women will be raised to 60 from the current 55, instead of the 63 previously proposed. However, he did not offer to change the proposed figure for men, which is rising from 60 to 65. The changes are supposed to be raised by one year every year over the course of the next five years.

The government's plan to raise the retirement age for both men and women was announced in June when most attention in the country was on the soccer World Cup it was hosting, and has caused widespread discontent.

Though the proposed changes bring Russia into line with most other countries, many Russian families, especially in rural areas and small towns, are worried that their household incomes will be seriously dented at a time younger people often struggle to find a stable job.

The proposals have weighed on Putin's approval ratings, which have dropped below 70 percent - his lowest rating since the 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Russia's pensioners have seen their incomes rising steadily under Putin and have been one of the president's staunchest supporters. In Russia, the average life expectancy for women is 78 and 67 for men.

Putin said the reform was necessary and "cannot be put off any longer." Without increasing the retirement age, Putin said Russia's pension system "would crack and eventually collapse."

"I'm asking you to be understanding of this," he said.

Russia's economy has been hobbled over the past few years by Western sanctions following the annexation of Crimea and lower oil prices. Russia is also facing a demographic crisis in the coming years as a result of the extremely low birth rates that followed the fall of the Soviet Union.

In addition to lowering the proposed retirement age for women, Putin voiced other suggestions aimed at softening the blow including an idea to keep old-age benefits such as tax breaks for senior citizens even before they reach the retirement age.

Putin is known for his annual marathon call-in TV shows where he talks to ordinary Russia via video-link and takes phone calls. But he rarely addresses the nation on television, which indicates just how contentious the planned reforms are.

Alexei Navalny, one of Putin's biggest opponents has called for nationwide rallies for Sept. 9. to protest against the reforms. Navalny was jailed on Monday for 30 days over an unsanctioned protest seven months earlier.

Putin has for years avoided discussing the highly unpopular idea of raising the pension age, an idea that has been advocated by his top economic advisers. The reform was announced in June by the government, and Putin has refrained from commenting on the subject for weeks.

Alexei Kudrin, chairman of the Audit Chamber and one of the earliest proponents of the pension reform, welcomed Putin's proposals, calling them "well-thought-out and crucial for the nation to be able to achieve its goals."

Russia's Communist Party, one of the main opponents of the reform, however, said Putin's concessions are not enough.

"This bill cannot be improved in my opinion," Party leader Gennady Zyuganov told the Tass news agency, adding that the party is working to collect signatures necessary to trigger a nationwide referendum.</s>Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday proposed a series of measures to soften a deeply unpopular pension reform, in an apparent attempt to stem a major fall in his approval ratings.

In a rare televised address, Putin suggested raising the state pension age by five years to 60 years for women, instead of the earlier proposed eight years to 63, among other measures.

“The treatment of women in our country is special, gentle,” Putin said in the 30-minute speech.

However, he stuck to the overall plan, saying the proposed increase in the retirement age for men would still be by five years to 65, as originally planned.

The Russian leader, who is 65, also suggested early retirement for mothers with large families.

He said companies that fire or refuse to hire employees because they are nearing pension age should face administrative or criminal liability.

The proposed reform — already approved by parliament’s lower house in a first reading last month — has sparked a rare outburst of public anger, with tens of thousands rallying across Russia in recent weeks.

Putin had sought to distance himself from the unpopular measures and had been widely expected to soften the proposals to buttress his falling approval ratings.

Most Russians have been against the proposed hike and critics said the reform would essentially rob ordinary people of their earnings.

Unlike in some western countries, pensions in Russia are meagre and many have to work past their state pension age to survive, while others rely on financial help from their children.

Putin insisted Wednesday that tough measures were needed, citing “serious demographic problems” stemming from the country’s huge losses during World War II and the fallout from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

“We will have to make a hard, difficult but necessary decision,” Putin said, adding his proposals would soon be sent to the Russian parliament’s lower house, the State Duma.

“I ask you to treat this with understanding,” he said.

The state pension age in Russia is among the lowest in the world and the proposed reform will be the first increase in nearly 90 years.

But given Russians’ low life expectancy — 65 years for men and 76 for women — many will not live long enough under the proposed reform to receive a state pension.

However, the government says the burden is simply too great for its stretched finances as the economy struggles under Western sanctions.

Putin said that unlike a decade ago, the country’s economy was ready for such reforms, pointing to the lowest unemployment rate since 1991 and increasing life expectancy.

Putin said that before announcing the amendments he had studied all “constructive proposals”, including those put forward by the opposition.

Ahead of the televised address, a Moscow court jailed Putin’s top critic, Alexei Navalny, for 30 days on Monday, just days before he planned to stage a rally against the reform.

Putin said the reform would allow authorities to better adjust pensions for inflation, bringing the average pension to around 20,000 rubles ($353) a month in 2024 from some 14,000 rubles now.

He also promised that various categories of employees, such as miners and industrial workers, would get to keep their benefits and proposed doubling the size of unemployment allowances for people close to pension age.

Putin, who had previously vowed not to raise the pension age, has seen public trust in his presidency fall to 64 percent last month from 80 percent in May, according to VTsIOM state pollster.

The last time his approval ratings were this low was in January 2014, just months before his popularity skyrocketed following the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Ordinary Russians welcomed the proposals, but some economists said Putin’s proposed amendments were only superficial.

Irina Petrova, a 44-year-old Saint Petersburger, said the reform was a “huge injustice”, even despite the proposed changes.

“I am very much disappointed in the authorities in principle,” she told AFP.

Ruslan Grinberg, scientific director of the Institute of Economics at the Russian Academy of Sciences, said the changes could help defuse tensions to some extent.

“This is a concession to public sentiment,” he told AFP.</s>Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed a series of measures to soften a deeply unpopular pension reform, in an apparent attempt to stem a fall in his approval ratings.

In a rare televised address, Putin suggested raising the state pension age by five years to 60 years for women, instead of the earlier proposed eight-year hike to 63, among other measures.

"The treatment of women in our country is special, gentle," Putin said in the speech.

The proposed retirement-age hike for men — by five years to 65 — will remain unchanged.

The Russian leader, 65, also suggested early retirement for mothers with large families. And he said companies that fire or refuse to hire employees because they are nearing pension age should face administrative or criminal liability.

The proposed reform — already approved by parliament’s lower house in a first reading in July — has led to a rare outburst of public anger, with tens of thousands rallying across Russia in recent weeks.

Putin had sought to distance himself from the measures and had been widely expected to soften the proposals to buttress his falling approval ratings.

At the same time, Putin reiterated on Wednesday that tough measures were needed, citing "serious demographic problems" stemming from the country’s losses during World War 2 and the fallout from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

"We will have to make a hard, difficult, but necessary decision," Putin said, adding his proposals would soon be sent to the Russian parliament’s lower house, the State Duma. "I ask you to treat this with understanding."

The state pension age in Russia is among the lowest in the world and the proposed reform will be the first such hike in nearly 90 years. But given Russians’ low life expectancy, many people will not live long enough under the proposed system to receive a state pension.

However, the government says the burden is too great for its stretched finances as the economy struggles under western sanctions.

Putin, who had previously vowed not to raise the pension age, has seen public trust in his presidency fall to 64% in July, down from 80% in May, according to data from VTsIOM state pollster. The last time his ratings were so low was in January 2014, just months before his popularity skyrocketed following the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.</s>MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday scaled back plans to lift women’s retirement age by eight years to 63 as he offered concessions to a package of pension reforms that have hit his approval ratings.

While Putin said the general thrust of the policy was justified given Russia’s wider economic and demographic backdrop, he did row back on the planned retirement age for women.

In a rare televised address, Putin said the new retirement age for women will be raised to 60 from the current 55, instead of the 63 previously proposed. However, he did not offer to change the proposed figure for men, which is rising from 60 to 65. The changes are supposed to be raised by one year every year over the course of the next five years.

The government’s plan to raise the retirement age for both men and women was announced in June when most attention in the country was on the soccer World Cup it was hosting, and has caused widespread discontent.

Though the proposed changes bring Russia into line with most other countries, many Russian families, especially in rural areas and small towns, are worried that their household incomes will be seriously dented at a time younger people often struggle to find a stable job.

The proposals have weighed on Putin’s approval ratings, which have dropped below 70 percent – his lowest rating since the 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Russia’s pensioners have seen their incomes rising steadily under Putin and have been one of the president’s staunchest supporters. In Russia, the average life expectancy for women is 78 and 67 for men.

Putin said the reform was necessary and “cannot be put off any longer.” Without increasing the retirement age, Putin said Russia’s pension system “would crack and eventually collapse.”

“I’m asking you to be understanding of this,” he said.

Russia’s economy has been hobbled over the past few years by Western sanctions following the annexation of Crimea and lower oil prices.</s>Facing protests and a noticeable dip in his approval ratings, Russian president Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday he was cutting a proposed retirement age for women from 63 to 60 years as he watered down draft legislation to reform the pensions system which has hurt his popularity and stirred protests.

In a TV address, Putin, who once promised to never raise the retirement age, took responsibility for the first time for the reforms which he said were needed to protect state finances, ensure stability in society and safeguard national security.

Proposed reforms put forward by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev's government had envisaged raising the retirement age to 65 from 60 for men and to 63 from 55 for women.

The issue has proved politically sensitive for Putin, who was re-elected in March, and prompted protests across Russia after it was announced on 14 June, the day Russia played the first match of its soccer World Cup.

Opinion polls show that around 90 percent of the population oppose the government's original proposals. The issue contributed to driving Putin's popularity rating down to 67 from 80 percent earlier this year, according to the Levada Centre pollster, its lowest since before Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea.

In his TV address, Putin put his name to changes to the pensions system, but he said he was softening parts of the reform, including cutting the proposed retirement age for women by three years to 60.

"The demographic development and labour market trends and an objective analysis of the situation show that we can't put this off any longer," said Putin. "But our decisions must be fair, balanced and absolutely take into account people's interests."

"That's why I am proposing a raft of measures that will allow us to soften the decisions taken as much as possible."

"We have a special, caring attitude to women in our country," he added, explaining his move to soften the blow for women.

Putin's spokesman has said the Russian leader is unfazed by fluctuations in his popularity but had decided to act on the pensions question because of its importance.

Having highlighted that Russia currently spends 20 billion roubles ($293.13 million) a day to pay pensions, Putin outlined other specific change proposals to the pension system related to the different groups of Russians, such as women with several children, and others.

Adjustments to the pension reform proposed by Putin would cost the state budget a around 500 billion roubles over the next six years and would "require adjustments to ... budget plans," Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said.

Older Russians have seen their pensions rise steadily under Putin and have been among his staunchest supporters, enjoying the stability they believe he has brought to the economy. But many of those who oppose an increase in the retirement age question whether they would live long enough to claim their money.

In Russia, the average life expectancy is 67 for men and 78 for women.

Though the proposed changes bring Russia into line with most other countries, many families, especially in rural areas and small towns, are worried that their household income will take a serious hit at a time when the young often struggle to find a stable job.

"This reform will hit hard people in provincial towns and in villages," said Arseny Radin, a Moscow-based engineer originally from the Vladimir region about 200 kilometres (120 miles) northeast of the capital.

Radin said his father, who would be retiring in a few years if not for the planned reforms, must travel to Moscow for work "because there are no jobs in provincial towns."

Asked about Putin's proposal to incentivise employers to hire older workers, Radin said: "What jobs are we talking about and what jobs are going to be kept for those people who are close to the retirement age?"

In his speech, Putin voiced other suggestions aimed at softening the blow, including an idea to keep benefits such as tax breaks for seniors even before they reach retirement age.

Although Putin is famous for his annual marathon call-in TV shows in which he talks directly to ordinary Russians via video link, he rarely gives televised speeches to the nation. For example, he did not give a nationally televised address in 2014 when Russia moved to send troops to Crimea and eventually annex the territory from Ukraine.

For years, Putin has avoided discussing the idea of raising the pension age, a move long advocated by his economic advisers.

It was not immediately clear if Putin's intervention would be enough to defuse public anger. But state television, the main source of news for most Russians, presented his intervention in a positive light, as did politicians from the ruling United Russia party.

Raising the retirement age would allow the government to pay out bigger pensions, whose current size he described as modest. The government says the average monthly pension will be 14,414 roubles ($212) by the end of the year.

Putin said the draft legislation, which is going through the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, would be amended to reflect his own ideas in the near future.

He listed several ways of raising money to fund the current pension system in order to delay reform, but said all of them would only work in the short term. Further out, they would end up destroying the economy, which has been battered by years of Western sanctions.

"In the long term, if we hesitate now, it could threaten stability in society and hence national security," said Putin.

Putin's political opponents, including opposition leader Alexei Navalny, have tried to tap into public anger over the proposed changes by organising protests.

A court sentenced Navalny to 30 days in jail on Monday after convicting him of breaking public protest laws, a move he said was illegal and aimed at stopping him leading a rally against pension reform next month.

With inputs from Reuters and AP</s>Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered some concessions to a package of pension reforms that have hit his approval ratings.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered some concessions to a package of pension reforms that have hit his approval ratings.

President Putin said the new retirement age for women will be raised to 60 from the current 55, instead of the 63 previously proposed.

However, he did not offer to change the proposed figure for men, which is rising from 60 to 65.

The changes are supposed to be raised by one year every year over the course of the next five years.

The government’s plan to raise the retirement age for both men and women announced in June has caused widespread discontent. In Russia, the average life expectancy for women is 78 and 67 for men.

Many Russian families, especially in rural areas and small towns, have relied on pensions as an extra income at a time younger people often struggle to find a stable job.

The proposals weighed on President Putin’s approval ratings, which have dropped below 70% — the lowest level since the 2014 annexation of Crimea.

Russia’s pensioners who have seen their incomes rising steadily under President Putin have been one of the president’s staunchest supporters.

President Putin said the reform was necessary and “cannot be put off any longer”. Without increasing the retirement age, he said Russia’s pension system “would crack and eventually collapse”.

“I’m asking you to be understanding of this,” he said.

Russia’s economy has been hit over the past few years by Western sanctions following the annexation of Crimea and lower oil prices.

In addition to lowering the proposed retirement age for women, President Putin voiced other suggestions aimed at softening the blow – including an idea to keep old-age benefits such as tax breaks for senior citizens even before they reach the retirement age.</s>In a rare televised address yesterday, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin offered some concessions to a package of pension reforms that have hit his approval ratings.

Putin said the new retirement age for women will be raised to 60 from the current 55, instead of the 63 previously proposed. However, he did not offer to change the proposed figure for men, which is rising from 60 to 65. The changes are supposed to be raised by one year every year over the next five years.

The government’s plan to raise the retirement age for both men and women announced in June has caused widespread discontent. In Russia, the average life expectancy for women is 78 and 67 for men.

Many Russian families, especially in rural areas and small towns, have relied on pensions as an extra income at a time younger people often struggle to find a stable job.

The proposals weighed on Putin’s approval ratings, which have dropped below 70 percent, the lowest level since the 2014 annexation of Crimea.

Russia’s pensioners who have seen their incomes rising steadily under Putin have been one of the president’s staunchest supporters.

Putin said the reform was necessary. Without increasing the retirement age, Putin said Russia’s pension system “would crack and eventually collapse.”

“I’m asking you to be understanding of this,” he said.

Russia’s economy has been hobbled over the past few years by Western sanctions following the annexation of Crimea and lower oil prices.

Putin voiced other suggestions to soften the blow including an idea to keep old-age benefits such as tax breaks for senior citizens even before retirement age.

Putin is known for his annual marathon call-in TV shows, but he rarely addresses the nation on television, which indicates how contentious the planned reforms are.</s>Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday scaled back plans to lift women's retirement age by eight years to 63 as he offered concessions to a package of pension reforms that have hit his approval ratings.

While Putin said the general thrust of the policy was justified given Russia's wider economic and demographic backdrop, he did row back on the planned retirement age for women.

In a rare televised address, Putin said the new retirement age for women will be raised to 60 from the current 55, instead of the 63 previously proposed. However, he did not offer to change the proposed figure for men, which is rising from 60 to 65. The changes are supposed to be raised by one year every year over the course of the next five years.

The government's plan to raise the retirement age for both men and women was announced in June when most attention in the country was on the soccer World Cup it was hosting, and has caused widespread discontent.

Though the proposed changes bring Russia into line with most other countries, many Russian families, especially in rural areas and small towns, are worried that their household incomes will be seriously dented at a time younger people often struggle to find a stable job.

The proposals have weighed on Putin's approval ratings, which have dropped below 70 percent — his lowest rating since the 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Russia's pensioners have seen their incomes rising steadily under Putin and have been one of the president's staunchest supporters. In Russia, the average life expectancy for women is 78 and 67 for men.

Putin said the reform was necessary and "cannot be put off any longer." Without increasing the retirement age, Putin said Russia's pension system "would crack and eventually collapse."

"We will have to make a hard, difficult but necessary decision," Putin said, adding his proposals would soon be sent to the Russian parliament's lower house, the State Duma.

"I'm asking you to be understanding of this," he said.

Russia's economy has been hobbled over the past few years by Western sanctions following the annexation of Crimea and lower oil prices. Russia is also facing a demographic crisis in the coming years as a result of the extremely low birth rates that followed the fall of the Soviet Union.

In addition to lowering the proposed retirement age for women, Putin voiced other suggestions aimed at softening the blow including an idea to keep old-age benefits such as tax breaks for senior citizens even before they reach the retirement age. The Russian leader, who is 65, also suggested early retirement for mothers with large families.

He said companies that fire or refuse to hire employees because they are nearing pension age should face administrative or criminal liability.

Putin is known for his annual marathon call-in TV shows where he talks to ordinary Russia via video-link and takes phone calls. But he rarely addresses the nation on television, which indicates just how contentious the planned reforms are.

Alexei Navalny, one of Putin's biggest opponents has called for nationwide rallies for Sept. 9. to protest against the reforms. Navalny was jailed on Monday for 30 days over an unsanctioned protest seven months earlier.

Putin has for years avoided discussing the highly unpopular idea of raising the pension age, an idea that has been advocated by his top economic advisers. The reform was announced in June by the government, and Putin has refrained from commenting on the subject for weeks.

Alexei Kudrin, chairman of the Audit Chamber and one of the earliest proponents of the pension reform, welcomed Putin's proposals, calling them "well-thought-out and crucial for the nation to be able to achieve its goals."

Russia's Communist Party, one of the main opponents of the reform, however, said Putin's concessions are not enough.

"This bill cannot be improved in my opinion," Party leader Gennady Zyuganov told the Tass news agency, adding that the party is working to collect signatures necessary to trigger a nationwide referendum.

The proposed reform -- already approved by parliament's lower house in a first reading last month -- has sparked a rare outburst of public anger, with tens of thousands rallying across Russia in recent weeks.

Putin had sought to distance himself from the unpopular measures and had been widely expected to soften the proposals to buttress his falling approval ratings.

Most Russians have been against the proposed hike and critics said the reform would essentially rob ordinary people of their earnings.

Unlike in some western countries, pensions in Russia are meagre and many have to work past their state pension age to survive, while others rely on financial help from their children.

The state pension age in Russia is among the lowest in the world and the proposed reform will be the first increase in nearly 90 years.

But given Russians' low life expectancy -- 65 years for men and 76 for women -- many will not live long enough under the proposed reform to receive a state pension.

However, the government says the burden is simply too great for its stretched finances as the economy struggles under Western sanctions.

Putin said that unlike a decade ago, the country's economy was ready for such reforms, pointing to the lowest unemployment rate since 1991 and increasing life expectancy.

Putin said that before announcing the amendments he had studied all "constructive proposals", including those put forward by the opposition.

Ahead of the televised address, a Moscow court jailed Putin's top critic, Alexei Navalny, for 30 days on Monday, just days before he planned to stage a rally against the reform.

Putin said the reform would allow authorities to better adjust pensions for inflation, bringing the average pension to around 20,000 rubles ($353) a month in 2024 from some 14,000 rubles now.

He also promised that various categories of employees, such as miners and industrial workers, would get to keep their benefits and proposed doubling the size of unemployment allowances for people close to pension age.

Ordinary Russians welcomed the proposals, but some economists said Putin's proposed amendments were only superficial.

Irina Petrova, a 44-year-old Saint Petersburger, said the reform was a "huge injustice", even despite the proposed changes.

"I am very much disappointed in the authorities in principle," she told AFP.

Ruslan Grinberg, scientific director of the Institute of Economics at the Russian Academy of Sciences, said the changes could help defuse tensions to some extent.

"This is a concession to public sentiment," he told AFP.

Opinion polls also show that around 90 percent of the population oppose the government's original proposals.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announces a softening of the pension plan presented in June. The plan's original announcement has led to protests and a dip in Putin's approval ratings.