In the midst of war, Putin’s approval reaches four-year high | World

An opinion poll published on Wednesday showed that 83% of Russians approve of Vladimir Putin’s government, the highest percentage since September 2017, while the numbers also show strong support for the government. Military intervention in Ukraine
. According to data from the Levada Institute, the main independent institution in the sector in Russia, the president’s approval jumped 12 percentage points from February to March, precisely the period of the war, while the percentage of those who did not approve of his path declined from 27% to 15%.

The survey indicates improvements in the rates of almost all personalities and public institutions in Russia: this is the case, for example, the State Duma, the Chamber of Deputies, in which the number of those who approve of its activities (59%) has exceeded, for the first time since October 2015, the percentage of those who failed in it (36%). Those who believe the country is on the right track account for 69% of Russians, the highest number recorded since 1996, when the Levada series began.

The poll showed a high degree of Russian support for the party The war in Ukraine
. According to the figures, 53% “strongly” support the military operation, while 28% support “largely” and 14% do not support it, while 6% said they do not know or do not want to express an opinion.

In the analysis, Levada notes that support for the conflict is lower in large cities, such as Moscow, and among the younger population: among those aged 18-24, only 29% support Russian actions in Ukraine, while among Russians over the age of 55 , the percentage rises to 64%.

The institute recorded the reasons given by both sides to justify or condemn the war. Those who support the invasion point out that “special military operation”
The Kremlin’s official name for the conflict was given to “protect the Russian-speaking population” in eastern Ukraine (43%), “prevent an attack on Russia” (25%), and “put things in order” (12%).

Those who want to see an end to the conflict cited “civilian deaths” (43%) and “interference in another country” (19%) to justify their opposition to the war that began on February 24.

In all, 1632 people over the age of 18 were interviewed in person between 24 and 30 March.

The war reversed the trend of the government’s low popularity rates, which intensified due to the deteriorating economic conditions and the effects of the epidemic in the country, which recorded 17.6 million cases and 361,000 deaths, with the authorities themselves acknowledging that the number could be much better.

Analysts are aware that the conflict is supported by a part of the Russian population, but see in numbers the effect of intense pro-conflict propaganda in state vehicles, along with cutting access to autonomous vehicles and closing most of the result of approval of measures criminalizing speeches that the Kremlin considers “harmful.”

Under one of these laws, adopted in early March, people accused of spreading “false news” can be sentenced to up to 15 years in prison. The ban on social networks, such as Twitter and Facebook, also makes it difficult to access independent information from outside that does not reproduce official government positions.

With information from international agencies