The Caucasus Research Resource Center-Georgia has released the results of a recent survey that examined the perceptions of foreign threats in Georgia.
Koba Turmanidze said at a press conference that the Russian threat has been a key political issue for Georgia ever since it gained its independence. The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has increased the importance of this topic. We decided to study Georgian public opinion regarding the war in Ukraine and Russian military threats in Georgia as well as the country’s future foreign policy prospects.”
The survey revealed that 42% Georgian Dream supporters believe that, in general terms, compromises can help prevent a possible war in Georgia. 46% of GD voters also believe that Ukraine might have avoided war. Comparatively, only 31% opposing supporters feel the same way about Georgia and 28% about Ukraine. News about the war in Ukraine is a powerful influence on the opinions of opposition supporters. Opposition supporters that receive updates about Ukrainian losses will be more likely to support concessions made to Russia than opposition supporters that do not receive this information. The same effect is not observed in supporters of the ruling parties or those who do not support any party.
Giorgi Babunashvili, the author of the report, summarized the key findings. He noted that roughly the same percentage of GD supporters as opposition supporters believe a war in Georgia is likely (60%). According to Babunashvili, the public is divided on whether Georgia should give in to Russia for national security. The survey revealed that most Georgians do not support giving up their country’s territory (84%), independence (79%), or Western aspirations (60%), in order to stop Russian aggression.
CRRC-Georgia conducted the survey in August and September. In total, 1,523 adults (18+ years) were interviewed in Georgia. The National Endowment for Democracy funded the study.
You can download the study report here.
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