George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party, who won the first round of the presidential election with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania’s focus inward.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
The United States will be ready to "walk away" from the negotiating table if it does not see Russia making progress in negotiation to end the war, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on May 8.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico arrived in Moscow on May 9 to celebrate Victory Day, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
US President Donald Trump on May 8 called for a "30-day unconditional ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia. Writing on Truth Social, Trump expressed his hope for "an acceptable ceasefire," with both countries "held accountable for respecting the sanctity of... direct negotiations."
President Volodymyr Zelensky had a "constructive" phone call with United States President Donald Trump on May 8, discussing the war, continued pressure on Russia, and a potential ceasefire.
The survey, conducted between April 24 and May 4, shows that 56.9% of respondents would not be willing to compromise on either territorial integrity or Ukraine’s pro-Western direction in any potential talks with Moscow.
U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
A polling booth during the parliamentary elections in Kyiv, Ukraine, 21 July 2019. (Photo by Sergii Kharchenko/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
62% of Ukrainians believe that elections should only be held after the war is over, according to a poll published by the International Republican Institute (IRP) on Oct. 24.
According to the results of the survey, only 22% of respondents prefer to see elections take place as early as March 2024, 6% would like to see elections take place as early as September 2024, and 3% in March 2025, if the war is still ongoing at those times.
A vast majority of respondents believe that Ukrainian diaspora communities should participate in Ukrainian elections, with 70% of respondents believing it is "very important" or "somewhat important" that Ukrainians outside the country vote in any upcoming elections, as opposed to 28% of respondents believing that the issue is "somewhat not important" or "not important at all."
Under Ukraine's Constitution, elections are prohibited while the country is in a state of martial law.
In addition to questions posed about upcoming elections, respondents were also asked about Ukrainians' support for being included in NATO.
79% of Ukrainians would vote in a referendum to join NATO, if one was held, with 5% intending to vote against joining the bloc of nations. The results highlight a 20 percentage point increase since April 2022, when 59% of respondents supported Ukraine joining NATO.
When asked about respondents' support for Ukrainian government officials, President Zelensky topped the list of support with 82% of respondents indicating they "approve" of the work the President is doing, down slightly from 89% in February 2023.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba scored second on the list with 71% of respondents approving his performance, followed by Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, with 59% of respondents approving of his performance.
A random sample of 2,000 Ukrainians respondents was conducted September 9-12 through computer-assisted telephone interviews. The results are deemed accurate within 2.2 percentage points 19 times out of 20.
Dmytro Basmat is a senior news editor for The Kyiv Independent. He previously worked in Canadian politics as a communications lead and spokesperson for a national political party, and as a communications assistant for a Canadian Member of Parliament. Basmat has a Master's degree in Political Management from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Governance from Toronto Metropolitan University.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
