Russians support operation in Syria

According to social polls of Levada Center, 72% of Russians approve the operation carried out by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in Syria against the terrorist organization Islamic State.

14% of respondents don’t like this operation and 14% found it difficult to answer the question.

As for the fact of bombing, it was approved by 31%. 25% of respondents said that they neither approve the air strikes nor condemn them. 22% admitted that they poorly understand the situation. And only 14% received the news about this with indignation and resentment.

47% of respondents expressed the view that Russia should support Syrian President Bashar Assad in the struggle against IS. 28% voted against the intervention of their country in armed conflicts. 10% stated that they have no answer to this question. 8% believe that "Russia should join the Western coalition in the fight against IS and the regime of Bashar al-Assad", 8% do not know anything about it.

49% believe that "the United States and Western countries will be able to find a common language in the settlement of the situation in Syria with Russia and the current leadership of Syria." 30% of Russians doubt it. 21% hesitated to answer.

The survey was conducted among 1600 people in 134 population centers in 46 regions of the country on October 2-5, Interfax reports.

A member of the Federation Council Committee for International Affairs, a representative of the executive body of state power of the Ryazan Region, Igor Morozov, told Vestnik Kavkaza that such an attitude from the survey's participants on the events in Syria are expected. "It seems to me that all the Russians understand the threat of terrorism. Today, IS and other radical groups, which are fighting in Syria against the government troops, are an evil that can spread beyond the Middle East and be in any city of Europe or Russia," he said.

"And the Russians are aware that it is easier to suppress IS in Syria, using all kinds of modern weapons and military equipment. Only this way can we ensure the safety of our citizens, to prevent terrorist attacks," Igor Morozov concluded.

Levada Center Director Lev Gudkov, in his turn, expressed the opinion that we should not overestimate the level of support over this operation by the Russian population.

"As long as it is perceived as a purely virtual story, and it does not affect the real interests of the population. These events are too far, Russian TV shows the attacks as painless for the Russian military, and the threat of Islamic State is quite serious. Therefore, in this case, people express default approval. People do not participate in it, they do not really understand what is going on there. They have no interest in it," he explained.