Russians generally favor nuclear disarmament and don't see the right to own nuclear weapons as something that belongs only to the established nuclear powers.

As results of a poll published by VTsIOM today indicate, half of the Russians (51 per cent) believe that the "new nuclear powers" (that would include North Korea, by the way) have the right to have nuclear weapons, just as the old ones.

As for the Russian nuclear arsenal, 39 per cent favor nuclear disarmament, but not down to zero - that option is supported by only 3 per cent of those asked. 23 per cent favor status quo and 25 - believe that Russia should be developing new nuclear weapons.

The good news is that when asked what makes a country a great power, not very many people put nuclear weapons high enough on their lists - nuclear capability ranked sixth, with only 22 per cent of people mentioning it. This would be just below human rights and rich cultural heritage, mentioned by 27 and 25 per cent respectively.