"We have different data": Sociologist commented on The Telegraph's report that about 50% of Ukrainians are ready to cede territories
Ukrainian sociologists have different data on the percentage of people willing to give up territory compared to those cited by The Telegraph, noting that putin uses any cessation of hostilities to prepare for the next round of aggression. This was stated by Kateryna Kotelenets, Candidate of Sociological Sciences, Associate Professor at the Department of Philosophy and Sociology at Taras Shevchenko National University of Luhansk, sociologist and facilitator, in a comment to OstroV on February 13.
"I want to focus on the research of the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), which has been conducting relevant studies since May 2022, including on the willingness to make territorial concessions. And I want to say that the dynamics regarding territorial concessions have changed, but not significantly. For example, if we talk about May 2022, those who were willing to give up territories to preserve peace were 10%. And now—the last survey was conducted in December 2024—this percentage stands at 38. So we see that a significant number of respondents have agreed to territorial concessions", - Kotelenets said.
However, according to her, it is also important to look at the percentage of people who under no circumstances are willing to give up their territories—even if the war lasts longer and there are threats to preserving independence.
"The percentage of such people decreased from 82% in May to 51%. The percentage of those who do not know how to answer or who choose the response 'hard to say' is also increasing. There were especially many of these in May 2024. Between May and early October 2024, the situation fluctuated slightly and essentially did not change, but already between early October and early December 2024, there was an increase in the number of those ready for concessions, from 32% to 38%. However, it should be noted that despite the difficult circumstances, 51% of Ukrainians still believe that no concessions are acceptable", - the sociologist said.
In terms of regional distribution, KIIS research shows that since May 2023, the number of those in the west of Ukraine who are categorically against concessions has decreased from 87% to 54%, in the central oblasts from 83% to 52%, in the south from 86% to 50%, and in the east from 77% to 43%.
"The trend shows that it is becoming harder for us to stand firm. Three years of exhausting war... Every family has someone who is fighting, has died, gone missing, or been wounded. This weighs on people. The russian propaganda narrative and the change in leadership in the U.S. also add pressure. This creates fear. And people begin to think that if they do not give up a piece of territory, they might lose it all—lose the country. If I speak about my personal opinion—I believe that a peace agreement will be based on concessions. Every war ends diplomatically. And all territories can be returned precisely through diplomacy. I think the concessions will consist of us restoring the borders as of February 2022", - Kotelenets noted.