Putin enjoys the highest support of Russians in his political career

Vladimir Putin enjoys a steady rise in popularity since March 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea, which the local public accepted as the nation's return to the society of global superpowers, writes the Washington Post, not hiding its astonishment that neither sanctions nor the presence of NATO on the borders have diminished support for the president, reports the Patria News Agency.

Some Western strategists had hoped that the sanctions regime would disrupt the Russian economy and weaken the ruble to the point where the people would demand change, but the latest public opinion poll shows the opposite scenario.

Putin's rating in January 2014 was 65 percent, two months later it rose to 80 percent, where it has remained with minor fluctuations until the recently published poll by the Moscow Levada Center, the only independent institution for polling public opinion in Russia, according to which the Russian president currently enjoys the support of 89 percent of respondents. This is the highest support since Putin, in the role of prime minister or president, has held power.