Photo by Media Center Ukraine – Odesa: Vadym Denysenko, executive director of the Ukrainian Future Institute. Presentation of the report: "Odesa myth in the russian-Ukrainian war of 2022"
February 10, 2023, 16:05

67-68% of russians believe that their state is moving in the right direction – Ukrainian Institute for the Future

Changes in the Russian Federation are possible only after this level starts to decrease,-  Vadym Denysenko, executive director of the Ukrainian Institute for the Future, stated this at the Media Center Ukraine – Odesa during the presentation of the report “Odesa myth in the russian-Ukrainian war of 2022”.

According to the expert, such support for the actions of the authorities is due to the fact that the russian authorities managed to impose some myths on the society. “First of all, there’s a myth that import substitution works. Paradoxically, unlike in the 90s, the russians managed to establish the production of food and essential goods. Secondly, russians believe that the environment in the country has become safer because of the war. In addition, russian people constantly talk about the return of traditional values, as well as the fact that the fight against corruption continues,” Vadim Denysenko said.

As the expert noted, the majority of russians believe that everything in russia is ok, but changes are moving slowly. And the main argument that confirms these narratives, according to Vadym Denysenko, is that “now things have not gotten worse in russia and its not like in the 90s.”

However, as Vadym Denysenko said, despite the fact that most russians believe that the rf is moving in the right direction, they also say tha they cannot be sure in their future. 

“This story has been going on since May 2022. ¾ of russians do not know about their future. And there are three topics that worry them. The first one is that men cannot find a job or be hired because of mobilization. The second one is the reduction of premiums and additional premiums. And the third –  the greatest fear of russians is a new wave of mobilization,” Vadym Denysenko noted.

The expert explained this polarity in the mood of the Russians (the country is moving in the right direction, but ¾ are unsure of their future) as follows: “If you ask russians about the continuation or termination of the so-called “special military operation”, 60%+ will be in favor of its continuation, and for termination. That’s all you need to know about russians.”

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