MOSCOW, 5 March 2022. Russian Public Opinion Research Centre (VCIOM) presents the findings of a study on the Russian perceptions of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine.  

Most Russians trust the Russian army (84%); one in ten respondents are likely not to trust (10%).

Seventy percent of Russians believe that the military operation is going well for the Russian forces. Fourteen percent of respondents are likely to think that it is not going well; 16% remain undecided.

Seventy-one percent of Russians support the decision to conduct a special military operation in Ukraine. One in five are unlikely to support it (21%). Eight percent of Russians fail to provide an answer.

According to 46% of Russians, Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine aims to protect Russia and prevent the deployment of NATO military bases in Ukraine. One in five believe that the operation was started to change Ukraine’s political course (19%); 18% say it is needed to protect the Russian-speaking population in the DPR and LPR; 5%, to occupy Ukraine and incorporate it to Russia.  

Russian nationwide VCIOM-Sputnik survey was conducted March 3, 2022. A total of 1,600 of Russians aged 18 and older took part in the survey. Results are based on telephone interviews. Stratified dual-frame random sample based on a complete list of Russian landline and mobile phone numbers was used. The data were weighted according to selection probability and social and demographic characteristics. The margin of error at a 95% confidence level does not exceed 2.5%. In addition to sampling error, minor changes to the wording of questions and different circumstances arising during the fieldwork can introduce bias into the survey