Russian President Vladimir Putin has garnered an approval rate of more than 70 percent in an opinion poll.
Analysts in the government-related poll organization attribute the high support rate to the successful Sochi Winter Olympics and his tough position over Ukraine.
The All-Russian Public Opinion Research Centre on Thursday released the outcome of a survey it conducted over the weekend across Russia, targeting 1,600 people.
The percentage of respondents saying they approve the performance of President Putin was 71.6, up 3.8 percentage points from the previous week. That’s even higher than the 68.8 percent marked in May 2012, when he returned to the presidency.
The approval rate for Putin has surged more than 10 percentage points over the past two months. It was 60.6 percent in January, shortly before the Sochi Winter Olympics began.
The research center attributed the surge to Putin’s tough stance on Ukraine as well as Russia’s successful hosting of the Olympics Games last month.
The Russian president has pledged unwavering support for the pro-Russian local government in Ukraine’s southern region of Crimea and even hinted at possible full-scale military intervention.
Source: NHK
