Translated material
About Western sentiments
Russians are confused in their attitude towards the European Union
Over the past two years, Russians have fallen in love with the European Union even more, but there are significantly fewer people wishing to join it. At the same time, our citizens do not really support the main areas of cooperation with the EU from the point of view of the Russian authorities - the creation of a global security system and joint scientific and technological projects. Such data were obtained by the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM) as a result of an initiative survey conducted on June 10-11. 1,600 respondents were surveyed in 42 regions of Russia, the statistical error does not exceed 3.4%.The last survey on a similar topic was conducted in 2008. As it turned out, since then a regiment of fans of the European Union has arrived in our country. If then 48% of respondents had a “rather positive” attitude towards the EU, now it is 55%. The number of opponents of a united Europe decreased from 15 to 9%. At the same time, only 29% of respondents believe that Russia should strive to join the European Union. Two years ago, this point of view was shared by 36% of Russians.
31% believe that Russia should limit itself to “equal partnership relations” with Western partners - two years ago this group was slightly larger (33%). But the number of pessimists has increased, believing that “in the West, Russia will never be treated as an equal partner anyway, so there is no point in it striving for Europe.” True, the growth in this group is not so serious - from 17 to 19% in two years. And most of all, during this time, the group of doubters has grown, who themselves do not know how Russia should build relations with the European Union. If in 2008 this answer was given to sociologists by 14%, today it is 21% of respondents.
The Russians also shared with the researchers their thoughts on specific areas of work with the EU that seem to them the most important and promising. Here the respondents were not original: 35% spoke in general terms about “deepening economic and trade ties” (27% in 2008), 24% about a joint fight against international terrorism (23% two years ago). All other aspects of “equal partnership relations” have become much less popular among Russians over the past two years. The number of supporters of cultural exchanges decreased from 11 to 9%, and from 21 to 16% the number of those who remembered “strengthening Russia’s position in the European energy market,” but simply about the export of oil and gas. Even such a “popular” item in the program of bilateral relations as the introduction of a visa-free regime between Europe and Russia has become slightly less popular: in 2008, 13% were in favor of it, now - 12%.
Moreover, over the past two years, those areas of cooperation with the EU that the country’s President Dmitry Medvedev considers to be the most important have begun to find less and less resonance in the hearts of Russians. Thus, 24% of respondents remembered military-technical cooperation and the development of a pan-European security system in 2008, but now only 13%. This is especially significant against the backdrop of active lobbying by the Russian authorities for the idea of a new treaty on European security. The situation is no better with another favorite hobby of the Russian President - modernization. While Dmitry Medvedev initiates the creation of a domestic silicon valley in Skolkovo near Moscow and tells Russian diplomats about the need for “modernization alliances” between Russia and Europe and the United States, citizens are increasingly cool towards this idea. If in 2008 24% of Russians spoke about the need to “implement joint scientific and technological projects” with the EU, now only 17%.
At the same time, judging by a number of signs, Russians have problems not with specific areas of work or even with their attitude towards the European Union. VTsIOM data indicate that over the past two years a certain mental turning point has occurred in the minds of our fellow citizens. If earlier society was traditionally divided into “Westerners” and “Slavophiles,” today a group of undecideds poses serious competition to them. Thus, the number of those who believe that Europe does not need a strong Russia decreased quite slightly, from 47 to 46%. However, in the group of those who believe that the West benefits from the rise of our country, there was a decrease from 36 to 30%. But 23% “difficult to answer” compared to 16% in 2008.
The picture is similar when answering the question about the place of Russian civilization in the world. The number of those who consider our country part of Europe decreased from 45 to 34%, but the group of advocates of the “special Eurasian path” also decreased from 42 to 38%. But the number of those who found it difficult to answer increased from 13 to 28%—more than doubling. It is possible that in this way the economic crisis turned into a mental one: previously, Russians sought to go to Europe, believing that life there was stable and prosperous, but the crisis dispelled these illusions. But another possibility is also possible: citizens are completely confused by the contradictory signals coming from the authorities. And if the authorities themselves find it difficult to clearly formulate their attitude towards Europe, then how can an ordinary Russian do this?