Russians see CIS, China as Russia’s chief foreign-policy partners – poll

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(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 28, 2013) Respondents polled in Russia recently said they would prefer Russia to deal with China and countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States rather than with the United States.

“Asked which countries should be given priority as partners in cooperation, 28% of those polled named members of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Levada Center pollster told Interfax after polling 1,600 citizens in April.

China is seen as Russia’s second most preferred partner (21%), Western Europe is in second place (20%), the United States third (9%) and Islamic countries fourth (3%).

Concerning relations with the U.S. 43% of those polled said the Russian leadership should stay farther away from Washington than now, 31% said “the current level should be maintained,” and 12% said the two countries should move nearer to each other.

Seventy-six percent of respondents do not doubt that the U.S. will continue using military force to do away with the regimes it deems “antidemocratic,” 11% disagree with this and 22% are undecided

Fifty-five percent of those surveyed said the operation which the U.S. carried out in Iraq against the Saddam Hussein regime ten years ago was a mistake, 14% disagree with this opinion and 31% were undecided.

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