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73% of Russians Believe Aleppo Airstrikes Criticism 'Attempt to Weaken Country'

Doctors Without Borders via AP

Almost three-quarters of Russians believe that criticism of the Kremlin's military strategy in Aleppo is an attempt to weaken the country, a survey by state-run pollster VTSIOM reported Tuesday.

Seventy-three percent of respondents said that Western complaints on Russian airstrikes were unjustified, while just 6 percent believed that the military had “gone too far.”

Almost a third of respondents (32 percent) said that they supported the government's current policy in Syria as a whole, with a further 16 percent claiming that Russia should push for further involvement in the region.

One in five (21 percent) said that the Kremlin should be more cautious in its military policies, while 14 percent believed that Russia should withdraw completely from the conflict.

Moscow's ongoing airstrikes in support of Syrian President Bashar Assad have drawn widespread global condemnation. French President Francois Hollande and British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson has both equated bombing in the besieged city of Aleppo to “war crimes,” with Johnson even calling for protests outside of Britain's Russian embassy.

The Kremlin has defended its actions, labeling Johnson's words as “Russophobic hysteria.”

Some 1,600 people took part in the poll, which was conducted between Oct. 8 – 9 in 55 Russian regions and cities.


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