Half of Russians support the continuation of the war in order to «finish what was started»

In Russia, after Ukraine's operation in the Kursk region, the number of respondents willing to negotiate with Ukraine decreased. On the other hand, those who support the continuation of the war have increased. However, there are still more supporters of negotiations — 50% versus 41%.

This is evidenced by the survey results of the Russian analytical center «Levada».

Thus, 23% of respondents answered that negotiations should definitely be started, and another 23% are inclined to negotiations. At the same time, 26% of those polled unequivocally support the continuation of military actions against Ukraine, and another 15% rather support it.

For comparison: in June, 26% of respondents definitely wanted negotiations and another 32% were inclined towards them. 34% of respondents supported the war.

Proponents of peace negotiations most often justify their opinion by the fact that:

• «many victims, people are dying» (48%);
• «to end the war» and «no one needs the war, they are fed up, tired» (13%);
• «people need peace, a bad peace is better than war» (7%).

Those who believe that it is necessary to continue hostilities, most often talk about:

• the need to «bring it to an end, finish what was started» (42%);
• «destroy, eradicate fascism, nazism» (18%);
• «peace negotiations are useless, they will lead to nothing» (17%);
• «it is necessary to protect and secure Russia» (10%).

However, the level of support for the actions of the Russian armed forces in Ukraine still remains quite high — 78%. A total of 17% of surveyed Russians do not support it.

The level of support is higher among men, respondents aged 40-54, low-income people and residents of Moscow (85%).

The survey was conducted from August 22 to 28 on a representative all-Russian sample of the urban and rural population of the Russian Federation. A total of 1,619 people aged 18 and older were interviewed in 137 settlements of the Russian Federation.

The research was conducted at the respondent's home through a personal interview.

The statistical error when sampling 1,600 people does not exceed 3.4%.

Operation in the Kursk region

The Russian side claims that on August 6, the Ukrainian military tried to break through the border and gain a foothold in the Sudzhanskyi and Korenevskyi districts of the Kursk region.

On August 12, the governor of the region, Oleksii Smirnov, reported to the leader of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, that 28 settlements in the Kursk region «are under the control of the enemy.»

On the evening of August 12, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the operation in the Kursk region. According to him, this was necessary to ensure the security of the border areas from the Russian military.

The spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Heorhii Tyhyi, said that Ukraine is not interested in taking the territories of the Kursk region of Russia. Currently, Ukraine is protecting its citizens, who are being fired upon by the Russian military from the territory of this region.

We will remind that in the Kursk region, on August 14, special forces of the Security Service of Ukraine captured 102 soldiers of the 488th Guards Motorized Rifle Regiment of the Armed Forces of Russia and the special unit «Akhmat». It is noted that this is the largest capture of the enemy, which was carried out at one time.

Also, according to local media reports, six Russian soldiers were captured by the Armed Forces, and the Russian Telegram channel «VChK-OGPU» claims that the Chechen special forces «Akhmat» stationed at the border have left their positions, and 15 soldiers were injured.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi reported that as of August 14, the Defense Forces of Ukraine destroyed the enemy in the city of Sudzha, Kursk Region of the Russian Federation. More than 100 Russian soldiers have been taken prisoner, the defense operation continues.