More than half of Ukrainians support reclaiming the status of a nuclear state, and almost as many believe that Russia must be deprived of nuclear weapons to prevent it from attacking Ukraine in the future. These were the results of a survey conducted by the Rating sociology group on November 20 and 21, 2022.
The status of a nuclear state for Ukraine and the nuclear disarmament of Russia
According to the data from the survey, 53% of the respondents believe that Ukraine needs to have nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, back in 2019, this idea was supported by 47% of the population.
Among measures that could deter a new attack on Ukraine in the future, Ukrainians chose a few primary ones:
- Accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (61%),
- Nuclear disarmament of Russia (50%),
- Accession to the European Union (34%),
- Guarantees from allied countries (34%).
At the same time, only 8% of Ukrainians (mostly from the eastern and southern regions of the country) believe that signing a peace treaty with the terrorist state can be an effective deterrent.
What will the Ukrainians consider a victory in the Russo-Ukrainian war?
According to the poll, the vast majority of Ukrainians believe that the war will only be considered won once all of our territory, including Crimea, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions, has been fully reclaimed. This opinion was expressed by 85% of the respondents.
Only 9% of Ukrainians said they would agree to accept the restoration of the Ukrainian border as of February 24, 2022.
Not more than 5% of the respondents deemed it necessary to continue hostilities on the territory of the Russian Federation.
Context. Ukraine gave up its status as a nuclear state on June 2, 1996, while back in 1991, the country’s nuclear arsenal ranked third in the world. It included 176 intercontinental ballistic missiles, dozens of Tu-95MS and Tu-160 strategic bombers, and thousands of strategic and tactical nuclear warheads.
Based on Ukraine’s accession to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and its undertaking to get rid of all nuclear weapons on its territory, the so-called Budapest Memorandum was signed on December 5, 1994, by Ukraine, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States. According to it, all the member states pledged to respect the independence, sovereignty, and existing borders of Ukraine and refrain from any acts of aggression against it.
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