Poll: 40% of Ukrainians would agree to a withdrawal of Ukraine’s Armed Forces from Donbas to end the war

Support among Ukrainians for the idea of territorial concessions in exchange for ending the war with strong security guarantees is increasing.

This is indicated by a poll conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS).

The study found that 52% of respondents категорически reject the proposal to transfer the entire Donbas under Russia’s control in exchange for security guarantees, while 40% are ready to accept such a trade-off. In January, the share of supporters of the latter view rose by 1 percentage point: 9% would agree to the swap easily, and 31% are generally in favor.

Another 7% were undecided.

The poll also found the following:

• Only 20% of Ukrainians expect the war to end in the coming weeks or at least in the first half of 2026.
• 65% say they are ready to endure the war for as long as it takes (up from 62% in December 2025 and 62% in September 2025).
• 88% believe Russia’s strikes on the energy system are an attempt to leave Ukrainians without light and heat and force them into capitulation.
• 90% believe Ukraine should strike targets on Russian territory; of these, 80% are convinced the Armed Forces of Ukraine should strike not only military infrastructure but other facilities as well.
• 66% expect that in 10 years Ukraine will be a prosperous country and a member of the EU.

The survey was conducted January 23–29 using telephone interviews, with 1,003 respondents.

Back in autumn, the director of the sociological group Rating Group said there was a huge demand among Ukraine’s residents for peace talks, and that public opinion on this issue has changed dramatically since the start of the war.