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Russians divided over Putin's military invasion of Ukraine
The BBC reported, according to its Russian reporters, shock, horror and bewilderment - three words that could describe the mood of many in the capital Moscow and the southern city of Rostov on Thursday. BBC Russian reporters also discovered that there is division over whether President Putin's actions are to be condemned or applauded.
One young man stopped to chat to the BBC, saying: "We are shocked. We have never seen war in our lifetime and we are about to see one."
According to the BBC, one women is not certain what to make of the news, although she is generally against the war. "It's politicians trying to sort things out between themselves and ordinary people who are suffering. It won't do any good for my family."
Some of those against the invasion have gathered in Pushkin square in the centre of Moscow to protest. The BBC Russian's Anastasia Golubeva estimates there were initially more than 200 people assembled before police instructed people to move on.
Anyone starting to shout "No to war!" was being detained.
Another young man told the BBC, "I have been crying all day. People in Ukraine are dying. Children are dying. Men who fight are dying. And then what? We, young Russian men, 19-20 years old will be packed off to fight too?"
Asked if he and his friends were scared to come to the rally, he said, "No. This is not frightening. What is happening in Ukraine and its borders is frightening. What we have here now is nothing."
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The BBC said that there were people supportive of the invasion.
A man talked about "protecting Russians" in Ukraine. He blamed Ukrainians themselves and said that it's "their own fault that they ended up in this situation".
He said: "They have always been problematic, throughout history."
A woman also referred to Russians in Ukraine. She said: "There are Russian people living there."
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But what about the Ukrainians living there, we ask?
"Ukrainians are mostly terrorists," she snaps, adding that she gets this information from state TV and YouTube.
Source: BBC
