Nearly 50% of Russians fear nuclear war could break out, survey reveals

MOSCOW, September 29. /TASS/. Nearly half of Russians (49%), mostly women, are somewhat afraid that a nuclear war could happen any time, according to a survey published by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center on Wednesday. On September 30, 1971, the Agreement on Measures to Reduce the Risk of Outbreak of Nuclear War Between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was signed in Washington, DC. "Half of our fellow citizens (49%) are somehow worried about the prospect of a nuclear war (mostly women): 36% have some anxiety, 10% experience intense fear, and 3% live in constant fear. Another half (of Russians) are not afraid of a nuclear war (49%), and most of them are men (61%)," the survey revealed. The majority of those polled (86%) are sure that a nuclear war won’t break out in the next 2-3 years. Half of Russians (54%) believe that preserving and boosting nuclear potential mostly contributes to maintaining peace, and one-third of the respondents (34%) hold the opposite opinion. "Although the worldwide nuclear disarmament process was launched in 1962, the majority of Russians (71%) think that this country needs to keep its potential and 16% are in favor of fostering the nuclear disarmament process," the pollster said. In addition to that, 83% of those polled don’t support the full elimination of Russian nuclear weapons over the next 3-5 years. For the long term, only 40% want to keep disarmament at its current pace, while 17% seek to boost it, and 13% say it should be reduced. The survey was conducted on September 4, 2021 among 1,600 Russian citizens aged over 18. The margin of error with a 95% probability does not exceed 2.5%. Read more