More than half of Russians believe threat of war is real, most place faith in army – poll

More than half of Russians worry that their nation is facing an imminent threat of war from other states, a recent poll shows. They also overwhelmingly place their confidence in the Russian Armed Forces.

Some 56 percent of people in Russia believe that there is an “existing military threat” to their country from some other nations, according to a newly published survey conducted by the Levada Center. However, only 15 percent are fully confident that this threat is real, while more than 40 percent are not so sure.

The general fear of a potentially looming military conflict appears to be in decline in Russia as the number of people, who believe in an imminent threat of war, has fallen by 12 percent over recent years. Back in 2015, it was 68 percent.

Meanwhile, most Russians trust in the nation’s Armed Forces ability to repel any potential aggression and defend the country in case of a military conflict.

A military parade is held during Vostok-2018 (East-2018) military drills. © Sputnik / Aleksey Nikolsky

Some 88 percent of people told Levada they believe that the military would “protect Russia” should a war break out. A half of all respondents also felt perfectly confident about the Russian Armed Forces’ abilities.

According to the survey, the Russian military has been enjoying a steady and sharp rise in public trust in their capabilities since 2014. The level of public confidence in the Russian army’s might grew by some 31 percent since 2013 when only just over half of Russians believed the military would successfully protect them.

The Russian military’s image has been recently reinforced due to the successful anti-terrorist campaign in Syria and increased defense spending, which saw state-of-the-art hardware put into service. Another recent survey conducted by the state pollster, VTSIOM, revealed that the army remains the most trusted state and public institution.

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