The mood begins to change in Russia. People in the country are increasingly concerned about the war in Ukraine, according to polls released Wednesday and Thursday by the Levada Center, an independent polling institute.
A first opinion poll, published on Wednesday, shows a change of mood regarding the country’s politics. To the monthly question “Are things in the country going in the right direction?”, 60% of respondents answered “yes” (compared to 67% in August) and 27% answered that things are going “in the right direction”. wrong.” “, compared to 24% in August.
While the approval of Vladimir Putin’s actions as president of Russia has remained at 82-83% since March, when the invasion of Ukraine began, the proportion of people who approve of his actions has settled at 77% in September . The proportion of people who declare that they do not approve of his action went from 15 to 21% between August and September.
56% of Russians very concerned about the war in Ukraine
Another investigation by the Levada Center, published this Thursday, focuses specifically on the war in Ukraine. Here we also see the clear impact of the Russian defeats in the framework of the Ukrainian counteroffensive in September and the announcement of the partial mobilization in Russia by Vladimir Putin.
The “concern about the Ukrainian events” has “reached heights”, notes the institute.
In September, 56% of respondents said they were “very concerned” about current events, compared to 37% in August and only 4% of respondents said they were “not at all concerned”, compared to 11 % in August. People age 55 and older are also much more supportive of the military (81% of people surveyed) than people ages 18-24 (55% of people surveyed).
The institute also asked the respondents what their feelings were after the announcement of the partial mobilization on September 21. 47% answered “anxiety, fear, horror”, 23% answered “shock”, 13% answered “anger, indignation” and only 23% said they felt “pride for Russia”.
Fear of a general mobilization
More than 2,400 people have been arrested during demonstrations against the mobilization in Russia since its announcement, according to the specialized organization OVD-Info. Many Russians have also chosen to flee the country, causing long lines at the borders of Georgia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and Finland. Air flights were also taken by storm.
Fear of a general mobilization has also increased, affecting 66% of those questioned in September, compared to 28% after the announcement of the invasion of Ukraine in February, according to the Levada Center.
The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, demanded this Thursday, during a meeting broadcast on television, that “errors be corrected” in the ongoing mobilization in Russia for the offensive in Ukraine, as discontent grows over the often chaotic call for recruits.
The media and Russians on social networks have reported cases of mobilization of the elderly, students, sick or recruits without military experience.
Source: BFM TV
