August 03, 2004 Putin slashes Soviet-era benefits Moscow, Russia, Aug. 3 (UPI) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin's public approval ratings have plummeted since he began abolishing Soviet-era free services, The Washington Post reports. Putin has targeted such benefits as free public transportation, free medication and cut-rate vacations for retirees, war veterans and people deemed "socially vulnerable" by the former Soviet Union, which crumbled in 1991.