Survey: Most Ukrainians oppose ceding territory to Russia in exchange for a "ceasefire."

The majority of Ukrainians are unwilling to sacrifice territories in exchange for ending the war with Russia. According to the results of a survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), 58% of the country's residents oppose such concessions.

32% are willing to make this sacrifice for the sake of peace. The proportion of citizens agreeing to this has been increasing since late spring 2023, but it has remained unchanged since May of this year.

Over the past five months, the percentage of those against ceding territories has risen from 55% to 58%.

It is specified that the survey did not address the official recognition of certain territories as Russian. Some Ukrainians advocating for immediate peace expressed a willingness to postpone the liberation of occupied lands to a more suitable time in the future. KIIS also emphasized that this stance does not equate to "peace at any cost" or a readiness to capitulate.

Ukrainians were also asked a question that proposed a specific territorial concession: all lands occupied by Russia, Crimea, or Donbas (Donetsk and Luhansk regions).

The question was phrased as follows: “Imagine that in order to achieve peace, such a demand will be made. Ukraine will not officially recognize this, but Russia will maintain control over…”

Respondents had to choose one of the answers: "easily" agree; indicate that it would be a "difficult but acceptable" option; or reject the proposal.

According to the results, only 30% of Ukrainians are willing to give up all lands occupied by Russia for the sake of peace, while 46% would do so for Donbas and Crimea. Only 4%, 7%, and 7% would find it easy to agree to these terms, respectively.

64%, 50%, and 51% of respondents consider such options to be completely unacceptable.

For those respondents who are strongly against territorial concessions or were undecided, additional questions were posed about whether their stance would change if Ukraine were to receive "NATO membership and truly reliable security guarantees."

In this scenario, the percentage willing to give up all lands occupied by Russia would rise to 51%, and for Donbas and Crimea, it would be 65% each.

42%, 30%, and 30% of citizens are categorically opposed to concessions even with NATO membership.

Commenting on the survey results, KIIS Executive Director Anton Hrushetsky noted that Ukraine is currently in a challenging position: Russian troops are advancing in Donbas, and the international situation is turbulent and uncertain, especially following the U.S. presidential elections.

Both Kyiv and Washington are waiting to see who the new President Donald Trump will appoint to key security and defense positions to understand how he will shape policy regarding Ukraine. Meanwhile, the invitation for the country to join NATO seems to be "less likely," as reported by a Reuters source at Bankova.

Background. As reported, Trump plans to bring Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table on his very first day in office, stated the press secretary of the elected head of state, Caroline Livitt. The inauguration is scheduled for January 20, 2025.

In the meantime, media reports suggest that the new U.S. Secretary of State could be Marco Rubio – an advocate for a "peace agreement" with Russia.