I've always felt that the general population often doesn't support the actions of their government, and I shared the same view as some of those who commented below, surely most Russians must be more aware of world events and cynical about Russian government propaganda.
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Originally Posted by Tomkat
Within Russia/CIS there may be some individuals who feel aggrieved by the actions of the US and its allies, but like in our own countries most ordinary citizens are good people.
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Originally Posted by motoreiter
I've been in Moscow twice in the last six weeks and spoke with many of my Russian friends. They unanimously told me: 1) they did not have any interest at all in taking over Ukraine; and 2) they thought Putin was bluffing and would not do anything.
Since the invasion, I've only heard from one friend, and she wrote to tell me that she was ashamed. Another friend with Russian friends and family told me that none of the Russians he'd spoke with supported the war. Finally, another friend told me that one of his Russian friends (living in Russia) wrote him to say that she and her friends hoped that Russia would get whacked with severe sanctions to make it pay... So stop blaming the Russian people for this madness--it is all Putin.
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Originally Posted by motoreiter
For what's it worth, I've been listening to Russian radio over the internet the last few days. The station (located in Moscow) has been having listeners call in to say if they have any loved ones in Ukraine, etc. Many people called in, many with either relatives in Ukraine or serving in the Russian army in Ukraine. Many of the callers were near tears...people are NOT happy about this war. The words "criminal," "irrational," and "unjustified" came up a lot. If you go to Russia in the near future I think you're more likely to have locals apologize to you for their country's shameful conduct than harass you.
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But then I read this article explaining the Russian psyche and world view. The ingrained views made me somewhat depressed. Even if Russia loses the UA war, how do you get the citizens to accept this?
It's interesting to note that apart from the 1st Tank Army and 45th Spetsnaz Brigade, most of the RU forces in UA are NOT from Moscow or other rather more enlightened areas. Instead RU is throwing in troops from the far east and the boondocks.
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