MOSCOW, July 29 (RIA Novosti) – Russians take pride in their history most of all, while the country's living standards remain a main cause of national embarrassment, according to a new survey by state-run pollster VTsIOM.
Eighty-five percent of those polled were proud of the country’s history, according to the poll released Monday. Eleven percent took no pride in Russia’s past, and 4 percent were undecided.
Other reasons Russians are proud of their nation are the achievements of the country's athletes (77 percent), arts and culture (75 percent), military power (63 percent) and scientists (60 percent).
The nation appeared split on the question of Russia’s place in international affairs, with half of respondents seeing it as a thing to be proud of, 35 percent disagreeing and 15 percent having no set opinion.
Living standards, however, were no cause for ambivalence: only 14 percent were proud of the quality of life in Russia, while 80 percent felt the opposite.
The nationwide poll, held mid-June, covered 1,600 respondents and had a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points. It offered respondents seven optional sources of pride to choose from, down from 16 in a similar poll in 2010, when Russia’s past was also the most popular answer, picked by 47 percent of respondents.
VTsIOM held a similar survey on Russia Day on June 12, when it asked respondents about Russia’s achievements over the past 15 years that they felt proud about. Forty-two percent said there were none.
