Record number of Russians unhappy with Kremlin's foreign policy – poll

Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine, internet restrictions and worsening economic conditions have triggered the strongest surge in public dissatisfaction with Kremlin policies in eight years, while the number of Russians unhappy with the government's foreign policy has reached a 20-year high.

That is according to The Moscow Times, citing a survey conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM).

According to the poll, the share of Russians who are "generally dissatisfied" with the government's domestic policy rose to 36% by the end of April – the highest level since December 2021.

Over the past four months, the figure increased by 14 percentage points, marking the sharpest rise for a comparable period since 2018, when the Kremlin launched its controversial pension reform. At that time, dissatisfaction climbed from 21% to 38% within four months.

For the first time since the start of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, the proportion of Russians dissatisfied with domestic policy exceeded the share of those who are generally satisfied with it, which stood at 33%.

The percentage of respondents dissatisfied with Russia's foreign policy increased from 16% in December to 26%, the highest figure recorded in two decades of available statistics dating back to 2007.

The survey also found that dissatisfaction with the government's economic policy rose to 46%, up from 31% in December. The 15-percentage-point jump over four months was likewise the steepest increase since the 2018 pension-age hike.

At the beginning of May the Russian Public Opinion Research Center did not publish its regular weekly approval rating for Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin after the indicator recorded its sharpest drop in eight years.