The Ukrainian Center for Social Research «Sofiya» has conducted a survey among the population of all the administrative regions of Ukraine, except the Crimea and the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics. The results of the survey showed that more than a quarter of Ukrainians perceive the war in Donbass as a struggle of businesses for spheres of influence in the country and the authorities’ enrichment at its expense. Ukrainians also believe that the current authorities of Ukraine are not interested in the speedy termination of the war, as the hostilities are profitable for them. The Minsk Agreements, they believe, only «freeze» the conflict for a long time.
Understanding the causes of the conflict
In the Ukrainian society today, there are several different opinions about the causes of the outbreak of the war in Donbass. Quite common is the understanding of the war as ‘the conflict between Ukraine and Russia’. At the same time, most citizens perceive the armed conflict as a struggle between business structures for spheres of influence, as well as a pretext artificially imposed by the authorities in order to enrich themselves.
How to end the war quickly?
Of all the respondents, 53% indicate that it is possible to establish the peace in a short time, with, most importantly, the political will and willingness to compromise. A third of the respondents (34.5%) believes that it is impossible to resolve the conflict quickly, because it is too complex and confusing. 12.5% of the respondents were undecided.
Is the peace worth compromising?
Just over a half of the respondents (51.5%) consider it possible to make concessions in the negotiations in order to end the war and normalize relations with Russia. Against the concessions spoke 30.1% of respondents. 18.4% were undecided.
The authorities’ attitude to the cessation of the war
The vast majority of the respondents (73.6%) is of the opinion that the current authorities are profiting from the war and are not interested in ending the conflict. Only 17.4% of the respondents believe that the authorities are doing everything in their power to accelerate the establishment of peace. 9.1% of the respondents were undecided.
The Ukrainian society questions the ability of the President Poroshenko to resolve the conflict in Donbass. Almost a half (46.5%) of the respondents said that an agreement to end the war could only be made by another president. There are significantly fewer (28.5%) of those who believe that Poroshenko is able to stop the war. 25.0% were undecided or expressed a dissenting opinion.
Ways of resolving the conflict
In the society, there are different views on the possible ways of resolving the conflict in Donbass.
Quite common is the view that the DPR and LPR should receive special status and become an autonomy part of Ukraine. This view is particularly popular in the south-eastern regions. At the same time, there are many people who support the solution of the conflict by force. There are more supporters of active hostilities in Galicia and central regions of the country.
Concerning the Minsk Agreements, the survey results showed that a half (50.8%) of Ukrainians believe that the implementation of the Minsk Agreements is in the interests of Ukraine. At the same time, a significant portion (21.2%) of the respondents is of the opinion that Ukraine should abandon those agreements. 28.1% were undecided, which indicates the complexity of the issue.
Ukrainians’ expectations regarding the Minsk Agreements
A significant part (39.8%) of the respondents expects from the «Minsk process» a settlement of the conflict by peaceful means. Almost as many (34.7%) of the respondents are of the opinion that the Minsk agreements are not the solution, but only «freeze» the conflict for a long time. Some (8.4%) regard the Minsk Agreements as the ‘surrender to Putin's conditions’.
Such conditions of the agreements as elections, amnesty and the provision of the special status to the DPR and LPR are mainly perceived by Ukrainians negatively.
Especially negatively is perceived the idea of amnesty: a half (51.0%) of the respondents do not support it, with 30.0% who do.
The attitude of Ukrainians to the proposal to hold elections on the territory of the DPR and LPR is supported by 35.5% of the respondents, and is not supported by 46.3%.
In relation to the provision of a special status to the DPR and LPR, 38.8% are in favor and 45.5% against it.
http://dnr-pravda.ru/2016/12/06/voyna-i-mir-mneniya-ukraintsev-o-prichinah-voynyi-na-donbasse/
- Ukraine, stop the bloody war in Donbass !
- May 9. Donetsk, Victory Parade
- RCC calls for a fair and independent investigation of May 2, 2014 massacre in Odessa, Ukraine