Despite growing uncertainty over the decline in U.S. aid, rising existential questions and Russia's progress on the ground, polls show that Ukrainians remain hopeful about their future. Voice of America correspondent Lesia Bakalests brings more details from Kiev on the poll data, as well as how Ukrainians are feeling now that three years have passed since the war.
Until 2022, this part of Independence Square in central Kiev was a flowerbed.
When Russia's large-scale attack began, people began placing Ukrainian flags there in memory of the killed soldiers.
In three years, the number of flags placed has reached hundreds.
"We brought a flag in memory of our uncle," says Polina, a resident of Kiev.
At the memorial, there is always someone.
Three years after the Russian attack, feelings are mixed.
"Don't ask me how I feel three years after the war. My husband died, he was part of the army," says Daria, a resident of Kiev.
"I feel despair in my body and anger in my mind, I want my husband back. He was at the war front, he hasn't been found for three months," says Liudmyla, another resident of Kiev.
"I don't think about politics, I want all people to be alive and the war to end. I want us all to live in peace," says Lina, a resident of the capital.
The Kiev International Institute of Sociology, a non-governmental organization, has been operating in Ukraine for more than 30 years. The latest survey conducted by the Institute, at the end of 2024, suggests that the majority of Ukrainians remain hopeful.
"More than 80 percent of respondents continue to believe that Ukraine is capable of achieving success in the war, if Western partners support it in the right way," says Anton Hrushetskyi, director of this institute.
A similar study conducted last year by the International Republican Institute showed that 88 percent of Ukrainian citizens surveyed believed victory was possible.
However, enthusiasm is not as high as it was when Ukraine faced a large-scale attack in 2022.
This was to be expected, according to Artem Zakharchenko, head of the Communication Analysis Team, a non-governmental organization that has been monitoring the behavior of Ukrainians on social media since the first days of the war.
"Now, the most difficult thing is that people don't know what to do to improve things. Right now, there's a lot of attention on (President) Donald Trump and expectations of what he's going to do," says Mr. Zakharchenko.
Sociologists also note that among Ukrainians, there is a lot of disappointment, fatigue, and anger, feelings that are influencing some to oppose the negotiations.
"There is a sense of fatigue, a sense of effort, but it is also understood that Russia is an existential enemy and this creates very little room for compromise," says Mr. Hrushetskyi.
At the same time, polls show that people's trust in the Armed Forces of Ukraine is consistently high, at 90 percent.
A study by the Ukrainian State Institute of Sociology, which was conducted with financial support from the United States, suggests that patriotism has united Ukrainians over the years. But the attitude of public opinion from a political point of view is another matter.
"These sacrifices that have been made are an indicator of maturity, the ability to face challenges and dedication. But when the war ends and we return to political normality, then we will see whether society has matured or not," says Serhiy Dembitskyi from the Institute of Sociology.
Meanwhile, near the memorial, a street musician performs a popular song by a Ukrainian rock band. The lyrics say that things will get better, for everyone./ VOA (A2 Televizion)
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