91% of Ukrainians want to join EU as support for NATO membership continues to decline

As Russian troops continue their brutal invasion of the Ukrainian cities, a record 91% of Ukrainians have expressed the desire to join the European Union, according to a survey conducted by the Rating Sociological Group. The figures for those willing to join the defensive NATO Alliance have drastically decreased. Amid the ongoing war, the support for EU accession among the Ukrainians “is on the rise,” the survey found. The willingness among Ukraine's citizens to join the EU increased from 68 to 86%, eventually hitting 91% since Moscow invaded the sovereign territory. 

"Support for NATO membership is on continued decline. It should be recalled that in the first days of the war, support for Ukraine's accession to the Alliance increased from 62 to 76% before dropping to 72% over the first week of hostilities and further down to 68% as of late March, that is, reaching the pre-war figures," Rating said in a statement on Tuesday. 

Credit: Facebook/Volodymyr Zelenskyy

56% of total Ukrainians believe their country will join EU 

According to the polls, a majority, nearly 56% of the total Ukrainians are convinced that their country will become a member of the European Union in one or two years. An estimated 23% think that it can take up to five years for that to happen. Meanwhile, the opinion of those who believed Ukraine will join the European Union in the short-term perspective slid from 61% to 56%. The opinion that Ukraine might join the EU in 5 years rose drastically from a meager 13% to 23%, according to the survey that involved the participation of at least 1,500 respondents aged 18 and older from all Ukrainian regions. This is mainly composed of the population in Russia annexed Crimea and parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. 

On the fifth day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed an application for Ukraine's membership in the EU. "[Zelenskyy] has just signed a historical document — Ukraine's application for European Union membership," Andrii Sybiha, the deputy head of the president's office, had tweeted at the time. Ukraine's prime minister and head of parliament also signed a joint statement, he added. Zelenskyy in a recorded video had appealed to the EU for membership and had asked the Russian forces "to go home". He asked the EU to allow Ukraine an immediate entry under a "new special procedure." 

"Our goal is to be with all Europeans and, most importantly, to be equal," he had said. "I am confident that it is fair. I am confident we have deserved it. I am confident that all this is possible."