How many Europeans believe that Ukraine will win the war with Russia: the poll showed the numbers

Europeans continue to support Ukraine, which has been the victim of a full-scale Russian invasion. However, two years into the full-scale war, only one in ten Europeans believe that Ukraine is capable of defeating Russia.

This is stated in a report by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), whose findings are cited by The Guardian. The researchers state that unlike last year's study, when Europeans were convinced that Ukraine should return all the occupied territories, the position of a "compromise settlement" prevails now.

The authors of the study "Wars and Elections: How European Leaders Can Maintain Public Support for Ukraine" state that the majority of European citizens continue to support Ukraine in its fight against the aggressor. However, the number of those who believe in Ukraine's ability to emerge victorious from the war has significantly decreased. Today, only one in ten Europeans is optimistic about the future.

At the same time, the opinion that the war is likely to end in a certain "compromise" is becoming more widespread.

"The change in sentiment - unlike this time last year, more Europeans said that Ukraine should return all its lost territories - will require politicians to take a more 'realistic' approach, focusing on defining what an acceptable peace would actually mean," the report's authors model changes in European foreign policy.

The Guardian also quotes the opinion of ECFR co-founder and director Mark Leonard.

"To justify continued European support for Ukraine, EU leaders will need to change their rhetoric, the way they talk about the war," he said.

A social survey commissioned by the ECFR showed that most Europeans are "desperate to prevent a Russian victory" but do not believe that Kyiv can defeat the aggressor on the battlefield.

The poll was conducted in January in 12 EU member states, including France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. It reflected the mood of Europeans after the end of the Ukrainian counteroffensive in southern Ukraine, but at that time Russia had not yet been able to occupy Avdiivka, having won its first "victory" after capturing Bakhmut in Donetsk region last year.

According to the poll, only one in ten Europeans currently believes that Ukraine will win on the battlefield, while twice as many (20%) predicted a Russian victory. Even in the most optimistic member states surveyed - Poland, Sweden and Portugal - less than one in five (17%) believe that Kyiv can win.

The majority of respondents - about 37% - believe that the end of the war is most likely to be a "compromise settlement." At the same time, in several countries, this outcome was called the optimal one.

For example, in Sweden (50%), Portugal (48%) and Poland (47%), respondents were more likely to say that Europe should help Ukraine fight back, while in Hungary (64%), Greece (59%), Italy (52%) and Austria (49%), respondents preferred to push Kyiv to a settlement. In France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain, opinions were more evenly divided.

"The survey showed that many Europeans increasingly consider Russia's war against Ukraine to be a matter of immediate concern, with 33% saying it has had a greater impact on their country - and Europe (29%) - than the war in the Middle East (compared to 5% who said the opposite in both cases)," the publication writes.

Earlier, OBOZ.UA told which countries Ukrainians consider friendly. In particular, the attitude of our citizens to Poland has recently changed.

Sociologists also released the results of a study on how many Ukrainians are ready to endure the war as long as necessary.

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