Russian Soldiers Want Peace

From mid-February to mid-April 2025, journalists from the independent outlet Verstka conducted interviews with over 100 Russian military personnel and veterans who participated in Russia's ongoing War on Ukraine. Using methods employed by independent sociologists who wished to remain anonymous, the journalists asked military personnel questions about the reasons for the war, its future, and the details of possible peace negotiations. 

The sample included various categories of servicemen: career military, volunteers, conscripts, former convicts, and mobilized soldiers. Forty percent of the respondents were men under 29, around 30% were 30-39, 21% percent were 40-49, and 8% were between 50 and 59.

“The worst peace is better than a good war. Those in the trenches know what I’m talking about,” said machine gunner Yevgeny, who fought in Ukraine as part of a private military company.

Most of the Verstka sources among the military share Yevgeny's opinion. A little over half (51%) of the soldiers interviewed said they would support Putin’s decision to withdraw troops from Ukraine even without achieving the “goals of the special military operation.” Forty-one percent expressed a negative view of such a prospect.

“It’s important that other countries understand that it’s not in their interest and is dangerous,” said soldier Ruslan. Notably, he deserted the front by shooting himself in the leg and escaping from a hospital to a neighboring country. 

The sociologist who partnered with Verstka for the study said, “Three clusters can be identified based on the level of support for troop withdrawal. The first is conscripts, who have been fighting for 6 to 12 months, with 67 percent supporting the end of the war. The second cluster consists of mobilized soldiers, volunteers, and convicts, with support ranging from 53-56 percent (these soldiers typically have over a year of combat experience). The third cluster includes career military personnel and officers who have fought for more than two years. Only 18 percent in this group would support troop withdrawal without achieving Putin’s declared objectives. The level of support for ending the war, despite unmet goals, largely depends on the military category: the less voluntary the participation, the greater the support for stopping the war."

The opinion on withdrawing troops also depends on time spent at the front. Only a quarter of veterans — those who have been in combat zones for more than two years — are ready to support troop withdrawal without achieving the war’s goals, while 52 percent disagree with such a decision. But what are the goals of the war?

Verstka asked the soldiers how they understand the goals for which Russia invaded Ukraine. Surprisingly, there appears to be no unified opinion on this issue within the military. Only one in five cited the officially declared goals of demilitarization and denazification. Slightly more (22 percent) believe the war was initiated to oppose the collective West and NATO.

Seventeen percent of soldiers named the full annexation of Ukraine as the main objective. Fourteen percent are convinced that Putin started the war to change the government in Kyiv. Thirteen percent mentioned the protection of Russian-speaking populations and the defense of borders. Some respondents also mentioned the preservation of power (3 percent) and enrichment (2 percent) as war objectives.

“The purpose of the war was to boost Putin’s ratings, that’s it. Life in Russia was getting worse and worse every year,” said one Russian soldier.

But was the war inevitable? More than half (51 percent) of the soldiers surveyed said they believe that the war could have been avoided. Forty percent are convinced that the war was inevitable. Nearly one in ten respondents could not definitively answer this question.

“It all depends on the old man. One moment, he just pushed the button and launched the missiles. It all depends on his mind. If there had been a different president, maybe the war wouldn’t have started. This is specifically Vladimir,” said a 19-year-old contract soldier from the Russian Far East.

Among career soldiers — those who were already serving under contract at the time of the invasion — three-quarters of respondents said the war was inevitable. This group contrasts with the other categories of combatants: more than half of them believe the war could have been avoided, especially among the mobilized (63 percent).

“This is understandable: they feel most like victims of the war. Conscripts are legally required to serve, contract soldiers generally make their own decision, and convicts see service as an alternative to incarceration,” commented the sociologist who worked on the study.

Almost all of Verstka’s military interviewees support negotiations in one form or another. Only 15 percent of respondents were opposed to any kind of negotiation. However, the goals of the negotiations and Russia’s position are interpreted differently by the soldiers. Just over half (52 percent) believe that Putin’s main goal is to hold onto the territories Russia has occupied. Twenty-nine percent think the goal is to change the Ukrainian government. Nearly a quarter (23 percent) mentioned preventing Ukraine from joining NATO as the primary objective of negotiations.

Most military respondents (53 percent) believe that Russia’s actions on the front lines are either “successful” or “mostly successful.” However, 41 percent have a negative assessment of the situation on the front lines.

Among them is Vitaly, an Airborne Forces officer currently stationed in the Kharkiv region. When asked to take the survey, he sent a video with the caption, “This is what happened when a mortar hit us.” The footage shows an artillery shell landing in a dugout.

More than half of the respondents believe that the fighting will continue for at least another year or more. Only 13 percent of respondents believe the conflict will end in the coming months.

Career military personnel and officers are less optimistic, with more than 60 percent of them not expecting the fighting to end soon. The mobilized and recent conscripts are more optimistic: half of the respondents from this group believe the fighting will end within six months or even sooner. However, even among those who are optimistic, there is no certainty that the war could end quickly.

“In a few months, they will reach some agreement. But there will still be gray zones, lines of separation, and artillery exchanges because wars don’t just stop like that. You can’t simply call a halt to it and then suddenly become friends again,” predicted Dmitry, a fighter who fought in Ukraine as part of a private military company.

Verstka noted that soldiers’ views on many issues sharply contrast with those of civilians. For instance, civilians tend to assess the situation on the front more positively. Sixty-eight percent of civilians consider Russia’s military actions successful, compared to 53% of military personnel.

The assessments of the negotiation process also differ drastically. Civilians do not consider the retention of territory to be the key goal of a peaceful resolution. According to non-military respondents, the main result should be Ukraine’s refusal to join NATO.

Overall, soldiers are less optimistic than civilians. Among military personnel, 54 percent believe the war will last at least another year, while among civilians, 42 percent share this view. Only 13 percent of soldiers believe the war will end soon, compared to 21 percent of civilians.