Why Many Russians Still Support The War In Ukraine

Despite hardships, many Russians back Ukraine war, driven by propaganda and economics.

- JOHN DOBSON

When I lived in Moscow at the moment in time when the Soviet Union collapsed around me, I witnessed a nation in despair. The shops were empty and the currency was in freefall. In the three years between 1991 and 1994, the rouble fell from 3 to the dollar to more than 4,000, and with their savings rapidly vanishing, desperate people were selling whatever they had in order to get some cash to keep their families alive. Emerging from a metro station, it was sometimes difficult to push through the crowds of people begging me to buy whatever they could find to sell, especially as they had spotted a foreigner who might have some dollars in his pocket. Sometimes I think back to those days whenever I try to puzzle out why Vladimir Putin has so much support for a war which he started more than three years ago on a neighbouring country.

There is little doubt that Putin is using the war to reverse the humiliation of the Soviet Union's collapse and reassert Moscow's influence in the region. But it is much more than that. Take a look at the data on Russian opinion compiled by the respected global data platform, Statista. In May this year, it reported that around 80 percent of Russians "certainly or somewhat supported Russia's military actions in Ukraine." Breaking the figures down, Putin's war has over 80 percent support among those aged 55+ and around 66 percent support among 18-24 year-olds. An earlier survey published by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs in January found that 78 percent of respondents favoured continuing military action in Ukraine, with about 76 percent believing that Russia will emerge victorious.