Survey: more than half of Estonia’s Russian-speaking population unsupportive of NATO presence
Results of a recent survey commissioned by the Estonian Ministry of Defence showed that while nearly 90 percent of the country’s Estonian-speaking residents support the presence of allied forces in Estonia, more than half of its Russian-speaking residents are opposed to it.
Results of a recent survey commissioned by the Estonian Ministry of Defence showed that while nearly 90 percent of the country’s Estonian-speaking residents support the presence of allied forces in Estonia, more than half of its Russian-speaking residents are opposed to it.
Of the people surveyed, 66 percent considered the steps taken to guarantee Estonia’s security fully or generally sufficient, with 77 of Estonian-speakers and just 43 percent of Russian-speakers responding positively.
The presence of allied forces in the country was supported by 69 percent and opposed by 23 percent of respondents overall, however the division of support was clear along linguistic lines: of Estonian-speaking respondents, 88 percent supported NATO presence in Estonia and 7 percent were opposed to it, while among Russian-speaking respondents, only 29 percent supported allied presence in the country while 56 percent opposed it.
According to the authors of the survey, similar attitudes among Estonia’s Russian-speaking residents were reflected in their attitude toward NATO membership in general: while 53 percent of Estonian-speaking respondents indicated that they believed NATO would render direct military assistance in case Estonia were in danger, just 19 percent of Russian-speaking respondents believed the same.
The study, which was commissioned by the Estonian Ministry of Defence, was conducted by polling firm Turu-uuringute AS. Survey respondents included a total of 1,203 Estonian residents aged 15 or over.
Editor: Editor: Aili Sarapik
Source: BNS