Poles name Volyn tragedy as main reason for worsening attitudes towards Ukrainians – poll
Almost half of Poles surveyed named disputes surrounding the Volyn tragedy as the main reason for the deterioration in relations with Ukrainians.
This is indicated by the results of a CBOS survey, Censor.NET reports, citing RMF24.
Key factors behind deteriorating relations, according to Poles
When asked about the reasons for the worsening attitudes of Poles towards Ukrainians, the largest share of respondents (45.4%) pointed to disputes surrounding the Volyn tragedy and policies on historical issues.
Social benefits and protection received by Ukrainians in Poland ranked second (36.4%).
Another 26.2% of respondents believed that disinformation and Russian propaganda had contributed to worsening attitudes.
A further 24.4% pointed to "the actions and statements of Ukrainian politicians regarding Poland."
Another 17.8% of respondents cited their personal experience of interacting with Ukrainians as a factor.
How political preferences affect perceptions of Ukrainian-Polish relations
At the same time, the authors of the study noted that these figures differed significantly depending on respondents’ political sympathies.
In particular, almost half of government coalition supporters (49.5%) believed that disinformation and Russian propaganda were responsible for the worsening attitudes of Poles. Disputes surrounding the Volyn tragedy ranked second among this group at 37.2%, while dissatisfaction with the social benefits package for Ukrainians in Poland ranked third at 24.6%.
Among supporters of opposition parties, meanwhile, the Volyn tragedy ranked first at 55.1%. The social benefits package for Ukrainians came second at 47.8%, followed by "statements by Ukrainian politicians" at 35.6%.
The survey was conducted on 17–20 August among a representative sample of 1,000 adult citizens.
