More than 50% of Ukrainians consider conflict in Donbas Russian aggression using local militants - poll

Among Ukrainians, the number of those who consider the conflict in the Donbas a Russian aggression against Ukraine with the use of local militants has grown. This is evidenced by the results of a study conducted by the Razumkov Centre jointly with the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation.

The majority of Ukrainians (53.5%) define the conflict in the Donbas as Russian aggression against Ukraine using local militants. According to sociologists, the number of supporters of this position has increased over the past year and a half - it was 45% before. Despite the fact that such a position is more popular in the West and in the Center, support for this very definition of the conflict in all macroregions, including the East and South, has grown significantly over the past 1.5 years. So, compared to November 2019, the share of supporters of this definition increased from 64% to 74% in the West, from 54% to 62% - in the Center, from 22% to 31%, - in the South and from 24% to 33% in the East, respectively.

The research was conducted by the sociological service of the Razumkov Centre in cooperation with the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation from May 14 to 19, 2021 in all regions of Ukraine, with the exception of Crimea and the occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk oblast. 2020 respondents aged 18 and over were surveyed. The theoretical sampling error does not exceed 2.3%.