Britons think they will hurt everyday Russians far more than those in positions of power
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Western nations moved swiftly to slap sanctions on the Russian leadership, its allies, the military and the Russian economy more generally.
The measures are designed to put the squeeze on those with their hands on the levers of power in Russia, and diminish the ability of their economy and military to support operations in Ukraine.
But Britons are far more likely to think that sanctions will hurt typical Russians (76% say a great deal or fair amount) than oligarchs (54%), the Russian military (40%) or Vladimir Putin himself (28%).
The level of expected severity is also far worse for typical Russians than the other groups: 43% expect the Russian populace to be hurt “a great deal”, compared to only 17% for the oligarchs, and 10% apiece for Putin and the military.
Half (48%) also expect sanctions to hurt typical people here at home in the UK, although only 8% expect Britons to be hurt “a great deal”.
