Putin's Address to Federal Assembly Receives Highest Public Praise in Years, Poll Shows

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin delivered his annual address to the Federal Assembly on 21 February, in which he focused on the crisis in Ukraine and the broader global security crisis. A plethora of analysts have applauded the remarkably well-rounded speech delivered in Putin’s trademark concise manner, considering all aspects of Russia’s life.

President Vladimir Putin’s annual address to the Russian Federal Assembly, delivered on 21 February 2023, has been met with a highly favorable response by viewers across the country, according to a survey by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM).

Putin’s speech produced an overwhelmingly positive impression on a major part of participants in the poll, which was based on the perception of the address by 129 respondents watching the live broadcast in 10 Russian cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Saratov, Volzhsky, Krasnodar, Ulyanovsk, Biysk, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Perm.

The survey, commissioned by the Social Research Expert Institute (EISI), used the method of measuring the perception of video materials, with respondents' reactions recorded in real time. Multimedia equipment was used to record the reactions. After watching the live broadcast, the respondents answered the questions in a formalized questionnaire.

On a scale of 10, the speech was given a score of 8.07. When asked of the overall impression made by Putin's words, 45 percent of participants said it was overwhelmingly positive. Another 36 percent said the impression produced by the president's words was more positive than not.

Participants singled out the importance and significance of the issues Vladimir Putin spoke about, both for themselves and their families.

Vladimir Putin's speech was typically characterized as interesting by 52 percent of the participants of the poll, with just 30 percent of the opinion that a major part of the address was interesting.

The Presidential Address was assessed as honest and sincere by 78 percent of respondents. The Russian leader laid out his position on a broad array of problems in a clear and comprehensible manner, 88 percent of the respondents said.

The poll showed that 84 percent of respondents felt a “positive reaction” to the speech, as opposed to just 16 percent who registered a “negative” one.

Compared with the previous annual address, given in 2021, the President's speech on 21 February 2023 boasts the highest appraisal, the survey by VCIOM showed.

The information obtained from the results of the study does not necessarily represent the views of the entire population of the Russian Federation.