More Than Half of Russians Want New Soviet State – Poll

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – April 21, 2016)

More than half of Russians would like to see the restoration of the Soviet Union, according to a poll released Tuesday.

Although 58 percent of respondents said they would like to see a new socialist system, only 14 percent believed that it was likely to happen, the report by the independent Levada center pollster revealed.

Thirty-one percent of respondents were opposed to restoring the Soviet Union, while 10 percent did not give an opinion.

The numbers show little change from a similar poll conducted a decade ago, the pollster reported.

The number of Russians who regret the collapse of the Soviet Union – currently 56 percent – remains below the all-time high in 2000 when President Vladimir Putin came to power. At the time, some 75 percent of Russians regretted the fall of the Soviet Union, according to Levada Center polls.

Just over half of Russians, or 51 percent, think the Soviet collapse could have been avoided, while another 33 percent believe it was inevitable, the latest poll indicated. In March 2000, the numbers stood at 62 percent and 26 percent, respectively.

The latest poll was conducted at the end of March with 1,600 adults in 137 cities and towns across Russia.