Support for Ukraine among Europeans remains broad, but almost two years after the invasion only around 10% of the population believes that Russia can be defeated: this is what emerges from a European-wide survey published in the Guardian.
At this point, according to the study commissioned by the think tank European Council on Foreign Relations (Ecfr), the most probable end to the conflict will come with a "compromise agreement" which will require a more "realistic" approach on the part of politicians, therefore centered on definition of what an acceptable peace actually means.
“To justify continued European support for Ukraine, EU leaders will have to change the way they talk about the war,” said poll co-author Mark Leonard of Ecfr.
The survey highlights that pessimism about the outcome of the war is fueled by a Ukrainian counteroffensive that has not yielded the expected results, by growing fears of a change in US policy and by the prospect of a second American presidential term for Donald Trump.
Across all countries, according to the survey, the most common opinion - shared by an average of 37% of respondents - is that the war will end with a "compromise agreement", although some countries are more favorable to this outcome than to others.
As for aid to Ukraine, in Sweden (50%), Portugal (48%) and Poland (47%) respondents are more likely to say that Europe should continue to assist the country militarily, while in Hungary (64%) ), Greece (59%), Italy (52%) and Austria (49%) prefer to push Kiev to accept an agreement.
In France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain, opinions are more evenly divided.
Reproduction reserved © Copyright ANSA