OREANDA-NEWS. August 28, 2009. The Russian Public Opinion Research Center (RPORC) has conducted a poll to see what the Russians think about the creation of a nuclear bomb in the Soviet Union in 1949 and what role they give to the nuclear weapon in guaranteeing Russia’s national security.

Half of the respondents have said that the nuclear weapon is the key guarantee of Russia’s national security. 27% say that the nuclear weapon plays an important but not decisive role (against 31% in 2002). 6% say that the role of the nuclear bomb is not significant and 3% regard it as a threat to the national security.

60% of the Russians believe that the creation of a nuclear bomb in the Soviet Union in 1949 helped to restore the military parity, to prevent the West’s nuclear war against the Soviet Union and to ensure long-standing peaceful co-existence of the USSR and the USA.

Those who believe that the creation of the Soviet nuclear bomb resulted in senseless arms race and put the world on the verge of a nuclear disaster constitute a minority – 27%.

The survey was conducted Aug 22–23 2009. It covered 1,600 people from 140 settlements in 42 regions and republics of the Russian Federation. The statistical error is no more than 3.4%.