Poll: Most Ukrainians don't think Russian-speaking citizens oppressed in Ukraine

According to a recent survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), 84% of Ukrainians believe there are no problems with using the Russian language in Ukraine, and Russian-speaking citizens are not oppressed.

Such results once again refute the Kremlin's propaganda narratives about the alleged persecution of Russian-speaking residents in Ukraine.

The survey's results didn't significantly vary depending on the region, with over 80% of respondents supporting this statement in all parts of Ukraine. The same applies to those who communicate mainly or only in Russian with their families.

However, the poll's results show that the total number of people who are confident that it's not problematic to use the Russian language in Ukraine dropped by 9% compared to May 2022.

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Публикация от Kyiv Independent (@kyivindependent_official)

Anton Hrushetskyi, the KIIS's executive director, explained the change by "an intensified public discussion about the use of 'the aggressor's language'" caused by Russia's full-scale war. He said that Moscow's actions apparently contributed to Ukrainians' worsening attitude towards the Russian language.

"We should also note that discussions on social media are always more radical and create the impression of significant problems when there are no such problems among the population as a whole," added Hrushetskyi.

The poll was conducted on May 26-June 5, 2023. The KIIS surveyed 984 people from all Ukrainian regions except those residing in Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia before the full-scale invasion and those who had fled the war abroad.