Most Russians think of CIA as world’s major terrorist organization

A recent opinion poll conducted by Yury Levada’s Research Center showed that 30 percent of Russians believe that the USA’s Central Intelligence Agency is a terrorist organization. Almost one-third of the polled Russian people therefore agreed with Iranian officials who ascribed USA’s CIA and Armed Forces to terrorist organizations.

Iranian officials released such a harsh statement in response to USA’s decision to declare Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps a foreign terrorist organization.

Nevertheless, 32 percent of Russian citizens are certain that the CIA has nothing in common with terrorism. In the meantime, up to 70 percent of Russians condemn the intention of the US administration to conduct pinpoint strikes on the camps of the Revolutionary Guard Corps and nuclear objects of Iran. Only eight percent of the polled approved the actions of the US administration against the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The UN Security Council has repeatedly imposed sanctions against Tehran because of its unwillingness to meet the requirement of the international community to shut down uranium enrichment works. Russia’s attempts to support Iran raise concerns with quite a number of Western countries. However, about 38 percent of the polled said that Russia needs to continue the nuclear cooperation with Iran. Thirty-four percent believe that such cooperation should end.

The above-described views of the Russian people can be explained with the policies of the Russian government towards Iran. President Putin has recently stated that Russia had no information on the military orientation of the Iranian nuclear program. That is why Russia is certain that Iran has no plans to build nuclear weapons. Putin emphasizes that there is no perspective in using methods of intimidation against Iran.