Record anxiety among Russians as Ukraine’s Kursk offensive unfolds
A staggering 49% of Russians have reported feeling anxious since the onset of the Ukrainian Armed Forces' operation in Russia’s Kursk region. This figure, the highest recorded since at least September 2023, has been highlighted by The Moscow Times, citing a public opinion poll from the Public Opinion Foundation.
Meanwhile, 45% of Russians sense a general calm among those around them, marking the lowest level of such sentiment this year. The last time anxiety overshadowed calmness was in May 2023, during the incursion by the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Freedom of Russia Legion into the Belgorod region.
The war against Ukraine remains the chief concern for 52% of Russians, with 28% specifically mentioning the Ukrainian operation in the Kursk region.
The recent incursion by Ukrainian forces into Russian territory has also caused a significant drop in the approval ratings of dictator Vladimir Putin, plummeting to 72.4% — the lowest since the first week of the Ukraine conflict, according to Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM).
Putin’s response to the Ukrainian offensive — the first on Russian territory since World War II — has been perceived as "at best inadequate," noted Jonathan Toebner, CEO of FilterLabs, a company that gauges public sentiment based on social media posts.
Data from FilterLabs shows a sharp decline in sentiment toward Putin, with an increase in expletive-laden mentions aimed at the commander-in-chief, particularly in Moscow and the three southern regions of Kursk, Belgorod, and Bryansk.
On August 6, the Ukrainian Armed Forces initiated an offensive in Russia's Kursk region. In a month of fighting, Ukrainian troops gained control of 1,300 square kilometers of territory, spanning over 100 settlements.