For the first time, sociologists have recorded a decline in the willingness of Ukrainians to tolerate war
4 November 2024 15:46
For the first time, sociologists have recorded a decline in the share of Ukrainians who are ready to endure the war for as long as necessary. At the same time, the majority of Ukrainians answered in the affirmative. This is evidenced by the results of a survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) on September 20 – October 3, 2024, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports
Sociologists point out that from the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 to February 2024, the situation has remained virtually unchanged.
Thus, consistently, about 71-73% of Ukrainians said that they were ready to endure the war for as long as it takes (and another 2-3% said 1 year). During the same period, 18-21% of respondents said they had a smaller safety margin (a few months to six months).
But in September-October of this year, 15% of people said they were ready to withstand the war for several months, and 4% – up to six months. However, the majority of Ukrainians, namely 63%, still answered in the affirmative when asked about their readiness to bear the burden of war.
“Between February and October 2024, for the first time, we recorded a decrease in the share of those who are ready to endure as long as necessary. At the same time, the majority of Ukrainians – 63% – still say that they are ready to endure the war as long as it takes. At the same time, the number of those who say 1 year has increased from 3% to 6%, that is, 69% of Ukrainians speak of a relatively long period,” the report says.
It is noted that the share of those who speak of a shorter period of several months to six months has not increased – 19% now and 21% in February 2024 (this difference is within the margin of error). However, the number of those who could not answer the question has increased from 4% to 12%, which obviously reflects the growing uncertainty of the future in the eyes of Ukrainians.
According to sociologists, there is an increase in uncertainty in the West and Center, but in general, the population of these regions remains highly confident in their capabilities (with minimal deterioration compared to February 2024).
However, in the South and East, the dynamics are much more pronounced. In the South, the number of those who speak of a relatively long period (1 year-as long as necessary) has decreased from 71% to 57%, in particular, the number of those who speak of as long as necessary has decreased from 68% to 50%. At the same time, there is no significant increase in those who speak of a short period – 24% in February and 26% now. Instead, the number of those who have not decided on their opinion has increased from 4% to 17%.
In the East (covering Donetsk and Kharkiv regions), in February, 73% spoke of a relatively long period, and 70% of them said “as long as necessary.” Now it is 48%, and 38% of them are ready to endure as long as it takes. On the other hand, the share of those who say it will be a relatively short period has increased from 23% to 36%, and the number of those who have not decided on their opinion has increased from 5% to 16%.
