Rating group poll: 50% of Ukrainians say peace matters more than victory, 83% support negotiations with Russia

Half of the participants in the Rating group’s October poll said that peace is more important than victory, while 41% hold the opposite view. Another 9% were unable to decide. At the same time, against the backdrop of intensified shelling in recent months, the share of those who place victory above peace has grown.

The poll was conducted from October 3 to 5. Its results were published in a press release by the Rating group.

According to the survey data, 56% of respondents believe Ukraine should make territorial concessions in exchange for Western security guarantees. Some 35% of those polled opposed concessions.

Assessments of the current situation at the front are also far from optimistic: only 26% believe Ukraine is winning right now, while the majority — 62% — think neither side is winning.

On the question of further action, opinions were distributed as follows: 57% favor a ceasefire and seeking compromises through negotiations, 21% favor continuing the war until the borders of 1914 are reached, and 13% until the borders of 2022 are reached. Meanwhile, 83% of respondents support negotiations with Russia and the search for a compromise solution with the involvement of other countries. Only 9% said they favor rejecting negotiations and continuing the war until all territories are returned.

A separate section of the poll addressed expectations for the coming winter. The majority of Ukrainians — 47% — believe the situation with electricity and heating will be the same as last winter, 39% expect it to worsen, and only 9% anticipate improvement. Overall, the majority of respondents forecast a deterioration of the situation on the home front — in the economy and energy sector. At the front, 22% expect things to worsen, while 30% believe nothing will change there.

Shortly before this data was published, KMIS conducted its own poll, the results of which showed that a majority of respondents were against Vladimir Zelensky running for a second presidential term. Sociologists also recorded a decline in Ukrainians’ confidence in winning the war.