Some 52% of Ukrainians trust President Volodymyr Zelensky, a drop of seven percentage points from October 2024 and 12 points from February, according to a survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) published on Jan. 7.
In turn, 39% of respondents said they do not trust the president.
The poll, conducted between Dec. 2 and 17 last year, comes as Russia's all-out war nears its third anniversary while Moscow's troops continue advancing in Ukraine's east.
Trust in Zelensky, dealing with growing unpopularity before February 2022, skyrocketed after Russia launched its full-scale invasion and the president remained in Kyiv to lead the country's resistance, earlier KIIS surveys showed.
The figures began to drop in 2024 as the battlefield stalemate gave way to Russian tactical advances, though most Ukrainians maintained their trust in Zelensky throughout the year.
Zelensky is seen more favorably in the western (60%) and central (52%) regions of the country and less so in the southern (46%) and eastern (42%) regions. Ukraine's south and east have been the most affected by Russia's war.
The survey's results were based on telephone interviews with 2,000 respondents residing in Ukraine-controlled territories.
Other recent sociological surveys point to moderate but consistent growth of pessimism among the Ukrainian population toward the war's progress. In another KIIS survey from December 2024, around 38% of respondents said they were open to territorial concessions in exchange for peace, a notable increase from 19% a year earlier.
Expectations of possible peace talks in 2025 are mounting as U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to bring Kyiv and Moscow to the negotiating table.
Kate Tsurkan
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