Most Russians believe that the extension of the lease on the Russian naval base in Crimea is more important than maintaining market gas prices for Ukraine, a poll said on Thursday.
An agreement extending the lease on the Russian Black Sea Fleet base in the Ukrainian port of Sevastopol for 25 years after the current lease expires in 2017 was ratified by the Russian and Ukrainian parliaments in April.
In return for the lease extension, which may be extended for an additional five years, Ukraine will receive a 30% discount on Russian natural gas worth an estimated $40 billion.
According to the poll conducted by the All-Russian Public Opinion center, as many as 73% of the respondents supported the extension of the lease for the Black Sea Fleet in Crimea, with 62% of those polled saying the lease extension was more important than market gas prices for the ex-Soviet republic.
Only 8% of the respondents want the fleet to withdraw from Ukraine while another 19% had no opinion.
The poll was published on Thursday to coincide with Black Sea Fleet Day in Russia.
MOSCOW, May 13 (RIA Novosti)
