Almost Half of Russians View Veterans of Putin’s War in Ukraine as ‘Spiritual Cripples’ and Don’t Expect Anything Good from Their Return Home, Levada Center Poll Finds

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Oct. 14 – Putin’s efforts to present the veterans of his war in Ukraine as heroes and the new elite of the country are falling short of his hopes, the results of a new Levada Center poll suggests. It finds that 41 percent think that the war has “crippled the souls” of those who have been forced to take part in it.

            Nineteen percent say that veterans have become “cruel and inclined to use force” even in situations where it should not be used; and 11 percent say that in the course of the war, Russian soldiers have become “indifferent and cynical” (levada.ru/2025/10/14/massovye-predstavleniya-o-vliyanii-spetsoperatsii-na-obshhestvo/ and ehorussia.com/new/node/33503).

            According to the Levada Center, 39 percent of Russians expect that there will be an explosion of crime when the veterans return, although slightly more – 44 percent – said that they expect the returning veterans to strengthen law and order. But even those who back the war and get their news from state media divide in roughly the same way as opponents.

            Young and middle-aged Russians have a more negative view about what the war has done to those fighting in it and what veterans will do to the country on their return than do older age cohorts, the survey by the independent polling agency says.