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Ukrainian poll shows that the proportion of people who believe that "territory cannot be ceded" has dropped by 20 points in one year

2024-07-24

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As the Russian-Ukrainian conflict entered its third year, despite NATO military assistance, Ukraine has not gained anything on the battlefield, and the number of territories in "crisis" has increased. On the other hand, more Ukrainian soldiers have died on the battlefield, and even conscription has become difficult because no one is willing to be "cannon fodder". Most importantly,More and more Ukrainian soldiers do not know why they are fighting. Seeing their comrades die on the battlefield, they ask themselves again and again: Is this to defend Ukraine or to help the United States weaken Russia? Under such torment, the morale and public opinion of Ukraine have begun to show signs of fatigue.

According to the Associated Press, a poll released by a Ukrainian authority on July 23 showed thatIn recent months, the proportion of people who firmly resist the war and believe that "territory cannot be given up" and "territory cannot be exchanged for peace" has shown a clear downward trend, to only 55%. Although it is still more than half, only a year ago, the number of people holding this view was as high as 75%, a drop of 20 percentage points in one year., which also clearly shows how serious the war-weariness of the Ukrainian people and soldiers is at present. Seeing this, Zelensky had to make a latest speech. In this regard, we talk about three topics.

First, Zelensky’s attitude has changed drastically.

On the 23rd of this month,In his latest statement, Ukrainian President Zelensky said, "Ukraine hopes to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict as soon as possible to avoid more loss of life."Just a month ago, he said that Ukraine would never make any concessions on the battlefield and would take back all the lost territories; a week ago, he also said that "he would not hesitate to use any means to deal with Russia and must have a break with Putin before leaving office." This shows that even as the leader of Ukraine, Zelensky's attitude has undergone a major change.

On the one hand, the low morale of the people is a fact. In order to replenish the troops, Zelensky not only issued a decree to send "minor crime prisoners" to the battlefield, but also asked Western allies to deport Ukrainian male citizens who had migrated to the country and send them to the front line. If two years ago, there were still many people in Ukraine who held a "resistance" attitude,After more than two years of suffering, there are fewer and fewer people now, and people's yearning for peace is stronger, even at the cost of "losing some territory"., which also forced Zelensky to change his attitude - after all, his enthusiasm was no longer there.

On the other hand, the changes in the US election have completely broken Ukraine's mentality. Biden, who had previously supported Ukraine, withdrew from the election, and Trump, who opposed aid to Ukraine and hoped to stop the conflict, had a clear advantage. Against this background, if Zelensky did not change his attitude, Ukraine might end up losing everything. It is precisely because of this that Zelensky could only "follow the will of the people", saying that he did not want to fight anymore, did not want more deaths, and began to negotiate.

Second, Trump has made Ukraine dare not have any illusions.

I remember it was only in March this year,Pope Francis urged Ukraine to "have the courage to raise the white flag" and start negotiations with Russia to end the conflict. But Kiev's response at the time was very fierce. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba said that "the colors of the Ukrainian flag are yellow and blue, and we will never raise other colors."But the situation is stronger than people. When the time, place and people are no longer right, what can Ukraine do even if it insists?

We found that Kuleba is visiting China these days, and one of the important topics of his visit to China is the Russian-Ukrainian peace talks.This was also his first official visit to China since the conflict broke out, and he made it clear that "China will play an important role."On the first day of his arrival in China, 14 Palestinian forces had just issued the Beijing Declaration in China and reached a reconciliation. This was also China's second major mediation effort to the international community after helping Saudi Arabia and Iran to reconcile last year. Kuleba's arrival at this time was a very clear signal.

Although Trump has not returned, the Democratic Party may not be able to find anyone who can defeat him. Secondly, his performance at the shooting scene has won over most American voters, and he has basically secured a seat in the Oval Office. As for the Ukraine issue, Trump has made it clear that he wants to restore peace even if Ukraine "pays a certain amount of territorial losses." In front of the United States, Ukraine is just a "chess piece" and has no say.Trump's momentum also makes Kiev dare not have any illusions. "Active peace talks" is probably the most realistic option at present.

Third, will the Biden administration agree?

It’s hard to say. First, even if Biden withdraws from the election, he still has six months left in his term, until January 20 next year. The Ukraine issue is his political legacy and one of the few “bright spots” during his four years in office. If he starts the peace talks with a “good start but a bad finish”, Biden will probably not agree.If Russia and Ukraine start peace talks, it will be like entering the "Trump rhythm", which will help the opponent's election. Biden will not allow this to happen.Although he withdrew from the election, doesn't the Democratic Party still have candidates fighting Trump? At this time, Ukraine is probably the most helpless, and it is for this reason that Kuleba came to China.