The “Russian Public Opinion – 2024” is an English version of the Levada-Center’s Yearbook that presents the results of public opinion surveys in 2024 in comparison with the data for previous years. Some questions have long-term trend. The free electronic copy of the book in English (2024) is available now.
Publications
Ukraine conflict in January 2026: attention, support for Russian armed forces, ideas on negotiations, views on what to do if agreements cannot be reached, duration and outcome of military actions
In January 2026, less than half of the respondents followed the situation around Ukraine – the minimum indicator during the observation period. The level of support for the Russian army’s actions remains high. The majority of respondents believe it is necessary to move to peace negotiations, while the share of supporters of continuing military actions has grown to a third of respondents. More than half of the respondents believe that if peace cannot be achieved yet, Russia should intensify strikes on Ukraine, including using new types of weapons. The majority of respondents still believe that military actions will last a long time, only a third say they will end within a year. The opinion that military actions will end in Russia’s victory is shared by three quarters of respondents, this share is quite stable.
Conflict with Ukraine in December 2025: attention, support for Russian armed forces, ideas for negotiations, and opinions on the US peace plan
In December, about a half of the respondents followed the situation around Ukraine more or less attentively. The level of support for the actions of the Russian army remains high. Two-thirds of respondents support transitioning to peace negotiations, while the share of supporters of continuing military actions has decreased to a quarter of respondents. Half of the respondents do not believe that the US attempt to achieve a peace agreement will be successful, while slightly more than a quarter say the opposite.
Attitudes towards the USA, EU, Germany, Great Britain, Poland and Ukraine in October 2025
Russians’ attitude towards the EU, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, and the UK remains predominantly negative. Attitudes towards the United States have worsened after a sharp improvement in the first half of the year, with negative assessments again exceeding positive ones. Attitudes towards the EU, the UK and Ukraine have improved slightly in recent months. Attitudes towards Germany have remained virtually unchanged for three years.
Future estimates and planning horizon: October 2025
About half of Russians look at their own future and the future of Russia with calmness and confidence, but positive assessments have been decreasing slightly in the last two years. Almost half of the respondents have no plans for the future. About the same number say they don’t know what will happen to them even in the coming months. Approximately one in five respondents plans their lives for 5-6 years or more ahead. They have more positive assessments of the future, and they also plan their lives for a longer period of time, most often young people who are more affluent and loyal to government policies.
Institutional Trust: September 2025
After a sharp increase in 2022, the level of institutional confidence has remained high in recent years, and in the September measurement, most indicators have again updated their maximum values. As before, Russians most often talk about trusting the president, the army, the security services, the government, and the church. The respondents are least likely to talk about trust in political parties, trade unions, and large Russian businesses.
Ukraine conflict: attention, support, attitudes toward negotiations and possible scenarios for ending the conflict in September 2025
In September, half of respondents followed events around Ukraine with some attention. Support for the actions of Russian troops remains consistently high. The share of those favoring a shift to peace negotiations has been above 60% over the past six months. Most respondents would support a decision by Vladimir Putin to end the military conflict with Ukraine “this week.” However, if ending the conflict required returning the annexed territories, only a third of respondents would support the president’s decision.
Problems with mobile Internet and blocking of foreign messengers
Most of the respondents had problems accessing the Internet on their mobile phones and problems with messengers. It made life difficult for half of them in one way or another. On the issue of support for blocking calls in foreign messengers, society is divided almost equally: a slightly larger part supports this decision, but almost as many do not support it. Supporters of blocking justify their support by “fighting scammers,” while opponents justify their support by “inconveniencing communication with family, friends, and work.” About half of the respondents support Internet censorship in principle because of dangerous sites and materials, and a third oppose Internet censorship. WhatsApp (owned by Meta, which is recognized as an extremist organization in Russia and banned) and Telegram remain the most popular messaging and calling applications. Today, about 6% of Russians use the national messenger MAX.
The summit of the Presidents of Russia and the United States in Alaska and the improvement of Russian-American relations
The majority of Russians have a positive attitude towards the talks between the presidents of Russia and the United States in Alaska. One in two believes that this meeting will help end the conflict in Ukraine and have a positive impact on relations between the two countries. Attitudes towards the United States continue to improve rapidly; today, less than a third of respondents have a negative attitude towards United States. About half of Russians rate the current relations between Russia and the United States as negative, but the share of positive assessments is growing. Today, the attitude towards the United States in Russia has returned to its before-2014 levels.
Conflict with Ukraine: attention, support, attitude to negotiations, use of nuclear weapons, possibility of conflict between Russia and NATO
In June 2025, half of the respondents followed the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Three quarters supported the actions of the Russian armed forces. At the same time, two thirds of Russians would like to start peace negotiations. Compared to last year, the proportion of people who consider the use of nuclear weapons in the current conflict to be justified has significantly decreased. More than half of the respondents today still fear that the situation could escalate into an armed clash between Russia and NATO