62% of Ukrainians oppose giving up Donbas in exchange for security guarantees – KIIS poll. INFOGRAPHICS

Most Ukrainian citizens reject handing Donbas over to Russian control in exchange for security guarantees from the United States and Europe.

This is according to data from a KIIS poll, Censor.NET reports.

Ukrainians’ attitudes towards territorial concessions

Thus, 62% of respondents consider it completely unacceptable to hand over all of Donbas to Russian control in exchange for security guarantees from the United States and Europe.

At the same time, 33% are prepared to make such a concession (although most of them acknowledge that this is a difficult condition). A further 5% were unable to make up their minds.

Sociologists note that compared with mid-February 2026, the share of those categorically opposed rose slightly from 57% to 62%. The share of those who agreed was 36% in February and is now 33%.

How many Ukrainians oppose handing over Donbas to Russia: a survey — Photo: KMIS infographic

How many Ukrainians are still prepared to endure the war

54% of Ukrainians say they are prepared to endure the war for as long as necessary. At the same time, 28% say they are ready to do so only for a limited time, up to six months. This is lower than at the beginning of the year: in January, the figure stood at 65%, and in mid-February at 52%.

In its conclusion, KIIS states that Ukrainians support the very fact of negotiations, but often perceive them not as a path to peace, but as a way of demonstrating that it is Russia that does not want to end the war.

At the same time, the issue of security guarantees remains important. Without clear and real mechanisms, most people are not ready to support compromises. Meanwhile, society’s willingness to endure the war is gradually declining.

The main segment behind the decline in willingness to endure the war is those who had been prepared to accept a difficult trade-off involving control over the Donetsk region in exchange for security guarantees. At the same time, for those who had previously rejected such a condition and did not expect quick progress, little has changed, and this has had less impact on their willingness to endure the war.