What are Western countries seeking by tightening sanctions against Russia? According to the majority (74%) of Russians, the main goal of Western countries is to weaken and humiliate Russia. Restoration of geopolitical balance as the goal of sanctions is mentioned by 12% of Russians, while only 8% of Russians consider stopping military operations in Ukraine.
And since the start of the sanctions in 2014, this has been the average position of the majority of Russians. The stopping of hostilities as a goal of the sanctions was earlier mentioned less (from 4% to 6% of respondents), while the weakening and humiliation of Russia was also mentioned less (the minimum was in the summer of 2015 - 66%). Compared to 2015, only the share of Russians who believe that the sanctions are imposed to restore the geopolitical equilibrium has changed significantly: it fell from 21% to 12%.
