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2.6 Polls & Sociology
The attitude of Russians and Ukrainians to each other has warmed a little : according to independent pollster the Levada Center and the Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) the proportion of Ukrainians who relate well to Russia has increased from 48% to 57% between now and November 2018 and Russians with a positive perception of Ukraine has risen to 34% vs. 28% over the same period. About half of all Russians and Ukrainians believe that there should be open borders between the two countries, with no visas or customs, while 25% and 38%, respectively, want closed borders. Over the year, the share of Russians supporting reunification into one state increased from 10% to 17%, versus only 4% in Ukraine. The overwhelming majority of respondents see the authorities of neighbouring countries very negatively: only 7% of Russians and 13% of Ukrainians give positive assessments of their fellow’s governments. But the share of Russians who see the citizens of Ukraine in a good light has increased from 59% to 82% over three years, while in Ukraine the same indicator increased from 67% to 77% in the same period. “One can hardly talk about warming with respect to Russians, rather, it has become less anti-Ukrainian propaganda,” the Levada Center director Lev Gudkov told Vedomosti. “Its intensity has slightly decreased since March 2018. Moreover, Russians have become more worried about domestic policy than foreign policy.” The head of KIIS, CEO Vladimir Paniotto agrees: “In Ukraine, the improvement is statistically significant. It began after the end of active hostilities and, above all, is connected with improving the attitude towards the Russians, and not towards the leadership of the country,” he said as cited by Vedomosti. “This may be related to the presidential elections in Ukraine [March 31] - the pro-Russian forces are more active, the pro-Russian TV channel has opened. The improvement came at the expense of the eastern region.”
16 UKRAINE Country Report April 2019 www.intellinews.com