The scientific director of the Levada Center announced the transformation of Moscow into a city with imperialist views

After the suppression of street protests and the departure of war opponents from the country, the Russian capital turned into a city with imperialist views, Levada Center scientific director Lev Gudkov said in an interview with Spiegel. Even if they want the war to end, Russians are not ready for territorial concessions, according to polls from the sociological service.

Quote. “They [older Russians] want Russia to fight until victory. These are mostly older men. We are also seeing a rise in aggressive and militaristic sentiment among wealthier and more educated people who believe in Russian superiority. This attitude is more pronounced in Moscow than anywhere else. After the suppression of street protests in the first year of the war and the exodus of those opposed to the war, the capital with all its officials and authorities turned into a city with imperialist views.”

• Even in conditions of war fatigue (66% of respondents want negotiations), Russians are not ready to put up with territorial concessions. “When we ask whether people would approve of Putin’s decision to stop hostilities tomorrow, 70% of respondents answer in the affirmative. But when we ask how they would react to the withdrawal of troops from the occupied Ukrainian territories after such a decision, the picture changes: 60% would condemn the withdrawal of armed forces,” says Gudkov.
• At the same time, the Russians, according to the sociologist, would accept a freeze of the war on the current front line, although this would cause discontent.
• If Putin does not declare victory, conflicts within the Russian power elite will intensify, Gudkov believes: “This will lead to a crisis that undermines the legitimacy of the regime. However, large-scale protests will only happen if one of the opposing sides critical of Putin does so publicly.”
• Opinion polls show that Putin has managed to reframe the war in Ukraine, which he initially declared as a fight to denazify the neighboring country, as a war against the entire West. “The confrontation with the West now overshadows everything else. In Russia, almost no one considers Ukraine guilty: only 16-17% of respondents consider it responsible for the hostilities; about 70% blame NATO, and 80% blame the United States. At the same time, only 6-8% of respondents consider Russia responsible. Thus, the Russians are completely shifting responsibility for the war,” says Gudkov.
• At the same time, Russians’ sense of hostility in the surrounding world intensified significantly with the war. “Almost all Russians - 92% - are convinced that modern Russia is facing enemies. This is the highest figure we have recorded since 1994,” says Gudkov. One of the reasons for this is government propaganda, which plays on long-standing inferiority complexes. “After the collapse of communism, the country did not develop into a modern state as quickly as other former Soviet republics. This has given rise to a feeling of self-deprecation, which is now being converted into hatred of the West,” the sociologist continues.
• Russians understand that Putin “will continue this war until complete exhaustion, regardless of the casualties and merciless destruction,” the sociologist believes. “The vast majority of Russians still support the war, following state propaganda. At the same time, we are seeing widespread war fatigue, a sense of insecurity and diffuse discontent among the population. The Russians are projecting this helplessness onto the US President; they pin their hopes on him,” Gudkov said.

What's next? Gudkov believes that immorality and cynicism in society will continue to grow. “The majority of Russians do not want to enter into internal confrontation with the authorities, which blocks opportunities for protest,” says the sociologist.

Context. Public sentiment may be one of the most important factors influencing the Kremlin's position in negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.