A growing number of Russians view the United States and Europe negatively while expressing less concern about Western sanctions, a new poll shows.
The U.S., the EU and other Western countries enacted economic sanctions against Russia after it annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine and backed pro-Russian separatists in the eastern part of the country in 2014.
In a new survey published Monday by the Levada Center, 60 percent of respondents said they had a negative view of the U.S., while less than 50 percent shared that view in January.
Fifty-four percent of respondents said they viewed the EU in a negative light, compared to 47 percent in January.
Meanwhile, 68 percent of Russians say they are not worried about Western sanctions against the country. The number of people expressing concern has dropped by over 10 percent since 2016.
At the same time, three-quarters of Russians believe their country should improve its relations with the United States and other Western countries.
Levada conducted its survey among 1,600 people in 48 Russian regions between Dec. 1-5.
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