Ukrainians’ positive attitude toward Western countries is growing, while their attitude toward the U.S., the EU, and NATO has declined – a study by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology
Ukrainians have generally become more favorably disposed toward Western countries, but the level of favorability toward the U.S., the EU, and NATO has declined slightly. The most positive views are held toward the Scandinavian and Baltic states. Ukrainians view Russia, Belarus, and Iran most negatively, according to data from a sociological survey conducted by the Razumkov Center on behalf of the Kyiv Security Forum (KSF) from April 2–8.
The balance of Ukrainians’ attitudes toward most Western countries has improved compared to the fall of 2025. This is evidenced by the results of a Razumkov Center survey commissioned by the Kyiv Security Forum.
At the same time, attitudes toward key partners—the U.S., the European Union, and NATO—have cooled slightly. For example, the balance of assessments regarding the U.S. now stands at +33.4%, whereas in September it was significantly higher—+46.6%. The situation is similar with the EU: +63.4% versus the previous +79.2%. NATO’s rating has also dropped—from +61.8% to +39.9%.
In contrast, Ukrainians give the warmest ratings to other Western countries. Sweden, Estonia, Lithuania, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway lead the way—all have a balance of over +85%. Support is also high in Canada.
Among major European nations, France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom are viewed positively. Neighboring countries—Moldova and Poland—also receive high ratings. Incidentally, Poland showed one of the largest increases in favorability—a rise of 22 percentage points.
Interestingly, attitudes toward Japan have improved significantly—by nearly 25 points. Turkey, Slovakia, and Israel have moderately positive ratings. There are also countries with a negative balance. Ukrainians have the worst attitude toward Russia—minus 90.5%. There are also negative ratings for Belarus and Iran. Attitudes toward China have improved but remain negative.
Hungary has the lowest rating among European countries—minus 29.1%. However, even here there is a slight improvement compared to the previous period. The survey was conducted from April 2 to 8, 2026, using face-to-face interviews. It involved 1,200 respondents from various regions of Ukraine. The margin of error does not exceed 2.9%. The full results of the study will be presented on April 23 during the Kyiv Security Forum.
