A shift in Bulgarian public opinion about the Russian president and more solidarity with European countries, a change in public opinion revealed a survey conducted on a representative sample of respondents nationwide by the polling company Alpha Research.
The poll was conducted jointly with the Bulgarian National Television (BNT) on February 28, 2022, with a live telephone interview that asked standard questions to a sample of 500 adult Bulgarians across the country.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, who for years enjoyed a positive rating, has lost more than half of his popularity in the first four days of military operations in Ukraine, the survey shows.
Although in the period 2020-2022 between 55% and 58% of Bulgarians had a positive opinion of him compared to only 20% who had a negative one, the situation has changed. Those who have a positive opinion have decreased to 32%, while those who have a negative opinion have increased to 48%.
The escalation of aggression, the loss of human life and the threat of the use of nuclear weapons are the factors that overturned the attitude of public opinion, as more than three quarters of them believe that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was unjustified, analysts say. In these critical days, the until recently controversial President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, gained popularity by 40% of respondents compared to 29% who have a negative opinion, the data show.
The unprecedented agreement of European countries to impose sanctions on Russia is considered a correct policy by 63% of Bulgarians. 32% of respondents have the opposite opinion. In this context, 55% approve of the move of Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov to demand the resignation of Defense Minister Stefan Janev because he expressed “personal” views on the country’s foreign policy, which differ from the common government policy. 36% do not approve of replacing Janev.
40% of respondents said they were ready to share part of the price of the sanctions for some time. However, 36% – mainly people with limited resources – would prefer not to pay or can not pay the price of sanctions.
SOURCE: ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ
Source: Capital
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