74% of Ukrainians support joining EU, 30% fear Moscow’s reaction — survey

The survey is the third part of a large-scale public opinion project conducted by research agency Info Sapiens on behalf of Transparency International Ukraine, focusing on corruption, reconstruction, and EU integration.

Overall, 86% of Ukrainians said they feel informed about the country’s EU accession process. A quarter of respondents reported being well or very well familiar with the progress of European integration, while 61% said they had some level of awareness on the subject.

74% of citizens support Ukraine's accession to the EU. The highest level of support is shown by residents of Kyiv (82%), western (80%), northern (78%), and central (76%) regions, while the level of support in the south and east is slightly lower — 69% and 64%, respectively. Six percent of Ukrainians oppose EU accession, and another 18% are currently undecided.

Most often, Ukrainians expect EU membership to bring a better future for their children (65%), peace (60%), economic growth (60%), improved quality of life (59%), and increased employment opportunities (58%).

According to the survey, 55% of respondents believe that European integration will help overcome corruption in Ukraine, and 54% are convinced that EU membership will promote the rule of law. Only 2% of Ukrainians see no advantages to European integration.

At the same time, Ukrainians also expressed concerns about joining the EU. The main concerns are the outflow of young people, cited by 48% of respondents, the exploitation of natural resources (35%), the influx of immigrants (31%), and the growth of bureaucracy (30%).

"It is noteworthy that 30% of respondents still cite the potential deterioration of relations with Russia as a negative aspect of Ukraine's European integration, and 11% believe that there is no future in the EU. Overall, respondents associate more advantages than disadvantages with EU membership — 8% of respondents see no disadvantages at all," the study concludes.

Forty-two percent of respondents are optimistic about the prospects of EU accession and believe that the process will take up to five years. Nearly a quarter of Ukrainians (22%) estimate that the process will take six to ten years, while 12% of respondents are convinced that our country will never become a member of the European Union.