Russians Don’t Trust Each Other and, Because That is So, They Do Trust Putin, VTsIOM Head Says

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Aug. 25 – Surveys show that Russians don’t trust one another, and that has led many to conclude that they don’t trust the authorities either, Valery Fyodorov says. But that intuitive judgment is wrong because people need to trust someone; and if a leader is clever as Putin has been, they will put their trust in him precisely because they don’t trust anyone else.

            In an interview to the Club of the Regions portal, the head of VTsIOM makes that point, almost certainly one that he is making to those in the Kremlin with which his polling agency is known to be close and one that will go a long way to reassuring Putin and his entourage that they don’t need to worry about low levels of interpersonal trust (club-rf.ru/interview/516).

            Indeed, if Fyodorov is right, then acting in ways that keep levels of interpersonal trust low may in fact be the best strategy for ensuring that Russians will continue to place their trust in Putin and even provide him with a firm foundation for maintaining power by ensuring that the population doesn’t turn to anyone else.