The attitude towards Alexei Navalny (listed as a terrorist and extremist by Rosfinmonitoring) has not changed significantly over the past year: half of the respondents disapproved of the politician’s activities, and one in ten respondents approved. Respondents most often say that Navalny has not played a special role in Russia’s history. One in two believes that the politician’s imprisonment was due to the fact that he violated the law and had to be punished, while one in five believes that the government was settling scores with its opponent in this way. The majority of respondents are neutral towards people who come out to honor Navalny’s memory.
Month: March 2025
Mass perceptions of Western sanctions: February 2025
Almost two thirds of the respondents say they are not worried about Western sanctions. At the same time, the freezing of Russian assets abroad is of particular concern. The majority of respondents believe that the sanctions have not created any problems for them personally. Against this background, there is growing confidence that the sanctions are directed against the Russian leadership, and not the general population. The prevailing opinion in society is that with the help of sanctions, Western countries seek primarily to weaken Russia. At the same time, more than half of the respondents are of the opinion that Western sanctions will strengthen our country and become an incentive for its development. The majority of respondents believe that Russia should continue its policy despite the sanctions.
Mass perceptions of Russia’s relations with America and Western countries
Russians’ attitude towards the United States has improved markedly amid the ongoing negotiations, which have become the most memorable event of February. Almost two thirds of the respondents rate relations between Russia and the United States as bad. The majority of respondents have a bad attitude towards Joe Biden, while the majority have a good attitude towards Donald Trump. The good attitude towards Trump is due to his attempts to resolve the Ukrainian conflict and improve relations with Russia. Almost half of the respondents believe that relations between Russia and the United States will improve after Trump’s election. Half expect that after the conflict ends, relations between Russia and the West will return to normal. More than half support the idea of expanding ties with Western countries.
Mass perceptions of foreign policy in Russia and the United States
A comparative study by the Levada Center and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs shows that Russians are more likely than Americans to advocate their countries’ active participation in world affairs. The majority of respondents in both countries call military superiority the most effective approach to achieving foreign policy goals, and two-thirds of respondents said it was effective to provide financial assistance to other countries and impose tariffs on imports of goods from unfriendly countries. The perception of the country’s power and influence in the world differs between residents of the United States and Russia.: Americans often believe that economic power is more important than military power. While among Russians, opinions are equally divided.
The conflict with Ukraine: attention, support, attitude to negotiations and possible concessions, opinion on the various terms of a peace agreement in February 2025
About half of the respondents are closely following the events around Ukraine. The majority of respondents support the actions of the Russian military and believe that the special military operation is progressing successfully. More than half of the respondents support the transition to peaceful negotiations, primarily to stop the loss of life. About a third are in favor of continuing military operations, primarily to “bring the matter to an end” and “finish what was started.” According to the majority, the United States should be present at the negotiating table on ending the conflict, in addition to Russia, and one in two respondents believes that Ukraine should participate in the negotiations. The respondents rate the negotiations between Russia and the United States positively. About a third of the respondents are ready to make concessions for the sake of signing a peace agreement. The most preferred terms of the peace treaty, according to the respondents, are: exchange of prisoners of war, ensuring the rights of Russian-speaking citizens of Ukraine and protecting the status of the Russian Orthodox Church. The respondents consider Ukraine’s accession to NATO and the return of new territories to be unacceptable conditions.
Ratings of February 2025: sentiments, opinions on the state of affairs in the country, approval of authorities, trust in politicians and parties, presidential electoral ratings
In February, the mood of Russians slightly improved: most of the respondents speak of a normal, calm state. The majority of Russians believe that things are going in the right direction in the country. Positive assessments prevail in relation to the authorities, the situation has hardly changed compared to last month. Among the politicians trusted by the respondents, they primarily name V. Putin, S. Lavrov, M. Mishustin, A. Belousov, and S. Sobyanin. If the elections to the State Duma were held next Sunday, the United Russia party would receive more than half of the votes, the Liberal Democratic Party and the Communist Party of the Russian Federation — slightly more than 10% each, the New People and the Just Russia — about 5%.