Russia's War Against Ukraine
OP-ED
Maureen Orth: The numbers Vladimir Putin doesn’t want you to see
A man stands near a trainload of modified T-72 Russian tanks after their arrival in Gvardeyskoe railway station near the Crimean capital Simferopol, on March 31, 2014. The Crimean crisis has sparked the most explosive East-West confrontation since the Cold War and fanned fears in Kiev that Russian President Vladimir Putin now intends to push his troops into southeast Ukraine. AFP PHOTO / OLGA MALTSEVA
Russians prefer alternative reality.
In the days since Vladimir Putin annexed Crimea, the Russian people are once again feeling good about their country. A robust 63 percent of them say they consider Russia a “great power,” according to a survey released this week by the Levada Center, a respected Russian polling firm. The survey also found that Putin’s approval rating is now at 80 percent, a 17-point rebound from his all-time low, just one year ago.
