Nine out of ten Russians would not like to move abroad permanently, which is the highest figure in 35 years of observation. Young people and opposition-minded citizens are more likely to move than others. The main reasons for moving, according to respondents, are an interest in another culture, a desire to provide their children with a decent future abroad, and the economic and political situation in Russia. Respondents most often name the United States, Spain, Italy and other European countries, as well as South Korea and Australia, as the destination for their relocation. Almost every fifth respondent has relatives or friends who have left Russia in the last two or three years. The attitude towards those who left Russia is ambiguous: some consider them traitors, while others say that they want to achieve more abroad.
Press-releases
Sources of information: frequency of use and trust, news fatigue, popular journalists and bloggers
Television is still the main source of information for Russians, but the total audience of Internet sources exceeds the television audience. For the first time, the share of the daily audience of online sources exceeded the share of those who watch news on television every day. Younger, educated, and well-off respondents are more likely to learn about news from the Internet. Older, less educated, and less well-off people watch news on television more often. About one in ten people learns the news on the radio, and the portrait of a radio listener is similar to that of a television viewer. During the Soviet era, two thirds of the respondents listened to radio more or less regularly, primarily Radio Mayak, and about 8% listened to foreign radio stations. The respondents believe that they are better versed in Russian events than in foreign ones. At the same time, most people do not feel tired from the daily news. V. Solovyov was named the most popular journalist/blogger, the respondents also mentioned O. Skabeeva, E. Popov, D. Kiselev and E. Poddubny. Poddubny.
The conflict with Ukraine in April 2025: attention, support, attitude towards negotiations, attitude towards the participants in the Special Military Operation
Attention to the Ukrainian events has been decreasing in recent months. The level of support for the actions of the Russian Armed Forces in Ukraine remains high. Over a half of the respondents believe that peace negotiations should be initiated, and about a third believe that military operations should be continued. There is no clear opinion in society about whether the “special military operation” has brought more benefit or harm. Respondents see benefits in the return of territories, the liberation of people, import substitution, and strengthening Russia’s authority in the world. The harm lies in the death of people. Most of the respondents believe that the veterans of the Special Military Operation are treated with respect in society. The respondents believe that after the completion of the “special military operation”, its participants will first of all be able to find themselves in military affairs, law enforcement agencies or in the field of youth education.
Ratings of April 2025: sentiments, opinions on the state of affairs in the country, approval of authorities, trust in politicians and parties, presidential electoral ratings
The mood of Russians has been improving for the second month: two thirds are in a normal state, one in five is in a great mood (maximum values). The majority of respondents believe that the country is moving in the right direction, almost one in five – in the wrong direction. Those who believe that things are going in the right direction in the country most often have in mind proper domestic and foreign policy (social and economic development, the special military operation). Those who believe that the country is moving along the wrong path explain their point of view by economic (inflation, low pensions/salaries, unemployment) and political (irremovability of power, wrong policies, corruption) problems. Positive assessments prevail with regard to the authorities, in comparison with the measurements of the previous months the situation has not changed much. The top ten politicians trusted by the respondents have not changed much, most of all they trust V. Putin, M. Mishustin, S. Lavrov. If elections to the State Duma were held this Sunday, the United Russia party would receive more than half of the votes, the LDPR — 14%, the Communist Party — 10%, the New People – 6%, the Just Russia – 5%. If presidential elections were held this weekend, V. Putin would win the majority of votes, other politicians were mentioned by less than 1% of respondents.
Problems with access to Internet resources and using VPN: March 2025
Over the past month, a third of respondents have faced the inability to access familiar digital services. The same proportion of Russians use VPN services to access the Internet. Both of these groups have grown in number since last year. Young people, more educated and affluent respondents, as well as opposition-minded citizens are more likely to say that they have encountered blockages, and use VPNs.
Use of the Internet, social networks, messengers, artificial intelligence and other online services: March 2025
Most Russians use the Internet at least a few times a week, and almost all of them use it among young people. The growth of the Internet audience is mainly due to the development of the Internet by older people. Three quarters of the respondents use social media, including more than half on a daily basis. The most popular social networks in Russia are VKontakte and Telegram. The YouTube audience has almost halved after the slowdown; against this background, the Rutube audience is growing noticeably. The respondents prefer to exchange messages and calls via WhatsApp and Telegram, and their popularity is growing. Almost one in five respondents uses artificial intelligence technologies, primarily for work and study. The most popular online services remain mobile banking, taxi ordering and online shopping services, and their use is growing year by year.
Attitudes towards the return of Western companies to Russia, foreign brands that Russians miss, and attitudes towards Russia’s participation in the G8
On the issue of returning departed foreign companies to Russia, the prevailing view is that each case should be carefully studied and only selected companies should be allowed back in. Most of the respondents do not miss the trademarks and brands that have left Russia. However, those who would like their return are most often called IKEA, Adidas, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Nike, Zara and car brands. Russia’s membership in the G8 is important for every third respondent, and the number of such responses has significantly decreased compared to the previous measurement.
The attitude towards Alexei Navalny, his imprisonment, his role in history, as well as the people who took to the streets to honor his memory
The attitude towards Alexei Navalny (listed as a terrorist and extremist by Rosfinmonitoring) has not changed significantly over the past year: half of the respondents disapproved of the politician’s activities, and one in ten respondents approved. Respondents most often say that Navalny has not played a special role in Russia’s history. One in two believes that the politician’s imprisonment was due to the fact that he violated the law and had to be punished, while one in five believes that the government was settling scores with its opponent in this way. The majority of respondents are neutral towards people who come out to honor Navalny’s memory.
Mass perceptions of Western sanctions: February 2025
Almost two thirds of the respondents say they are not worried about Western sanctions. At the same time, the freezing of Russian assets abroad is of particular concern. The majority of respondents believe that the sanctions have not created any problems for them personally. Against this background, there is growing confidence that the sanctions are directed against the Russian leadership, and not the general population. The prevailing opinion in society is that with the help of sanctions, Western countries seek primarily to weaken Russia. At the same time, more than half of the respondents are of the opinion that Western sanctions will strengthen our country and become an incentive for its development. The majority of respondents believe that Russia should continue its policy despite the sanctions.
Mass perceptions of Russia’s relations with America and Western countries
Russians’ attitude towards the United States has improved markedly amid the ongoing negotiations, which have become the most memorable event of February. Almost two thirds of the respondents rate relations between Russia and the United States as bad. The majority of respondents have a bad attitude towards Joe Biden, while the majority have a good attitude towards Donald Trump. The good attitude towards Trump is due to his attempts to resolve the Ukrainian conflict and improve relations with Russia. Almost half of the respondents believe that relations between Russia and the United States will improve after Trump’s election. Half expect that after the conflict ends, relations between Russia and the West will return to normal. More than half support the idea of expanding ties with Western countries.