Poll: Fewer Ukrainians think country is moving 'in the right direction' than in early 2023

The share of Ukrainians who believe that "events in the country are developing in the right direction" has gradually decreased after reaching the peak in February-March 2023, according to a survey by the Razumkov Center published on Feb. 7.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has recently said he was planning a large-scale reset of Ukraine's leadership amid rumors of the potential dismissal of Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi, which most Ukrainians reportedly oppose.

Veterans Affairs Minister Yuliia Laputina submitted her resignation on Feb. 5, on which Zelensky commented that Ukraine needs "fresh energy."

Are Zelensky and his top general really in discord?

Editor’s Note: This story initially mistakenly said that President Volodymyr Zelensky and Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi haven’t been seen together in public in two months. It was corrected since the two were seen together in public more recently. After successfully taking Ukraine through the…

The Kyiv IndependentAlexander Khrebet

At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Ukrainians became significantly more satisfied with the direction in which Ukraine was moving compared to 2021, according to the Razumkov Center. The figure reached its peak of 61% in early 2023 but has been dropping since then.

The latest survey conducted on Jan. 19-25 showed that 41% of Ukrainians think the country is "moving in the right direction," and a slightly smaller figure of 38% believes the opposite, the center wrote in a press release.

Most respondents said the situation has worsened compared to the beginning of 2023 in terms of prices and tariffs (86%), the state of the economy (68%), stability (64.5%), confidence in tomorrow (63.5%), the well-being of their families (58%), and the attitude of citizens towards the authorities (53%).

Around half of polled Ukrainians believe that the situation has not changed over the past year in the areas of pension provision (55%), health care (52%), and freedom of speech (51%).

According to respondents, positive changes mostly relate to the country's defense capability (51%) and its international reputation (50.5%).

As for overcoming existing problems and challenges, 33% of Ukrainians believe it would be possible to do so within the next few years, 42% said it would take longer, and 9% don't believe it's possible at all, the survey results showed.

The Razumkov Center said it surveyed 2,000 Ukrainian adults from all regions except for the Russian-occupied territories and front-line settlements.

‘It’s their turn now:’ Ukrainians call on government to demobilize exhausted soldiers fighting for nearly two years

Over a hundred women braved a snowstorm in early December to gather in central Kyiv’s Independence Square and call on the government to demobilize their relatives who have been on the front lines since the first days of the invasion. Draped in Ukrainian flags, women chanted, “It’s their

The Kyiv IndependentAlexander Query