Accession to EU still supported by 59% of Ukrainians despite challenges

Accession to the European Union remains a priority for the majority of Ukrainians despite external and internal challenges along this path.

Source: a survey conducted by the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation together with the sociological service of the Razumkov Centre between 5 and 16 December 2025, as reported by European Pravda

Details: After the start of the full-scale war, support for European integration increased significantly, in particular due to Ukraine obtaining EU candidate status. As of December 2024, 69% of the population supported EU accession. Despite a decline in support for the European integration path in 2025 to 59%, orientation towards EU membership remains at its highest level compared to the years before the full-scale invasion.

In 2013, support for EU accession reached 43%. At that time, however, the country was divided between two alternatives. Part of the population looked towards Europe (43%), while another part looked towards a Eurasian union with Russia (29.5%). After the Revolution of Dignity, the situation changed dramatically. Support for the EU became stable and dominant, while support for the Eurasian direction sharply declined and is no longer a real alternative.

"The decline in support for EU accession over the past year should be viewed not as a rise in anti-European sentiment in the country, but in the broader context of societal fatigue and disappointment caused by the slowing pace of change compared to the beginning of the full-scale invasion," sociologists explain.

Ukraine's European course is supported in all macro-regions, though the intensity of support varies. In western oblasts, support for EU accession is the highest (79%). In the centre, support is also high, though less unanimous (62%). In southern and eastern oblasts, the share of supporters of EU accession is lower, but even there the EU remains the first choice compared to other options (44.5% and 38% respectively). Meanwhile, in the southern and eastern macro-regions, there are more people who choose not to join any union (32% and 33%), as well as more respondents who are undecided (19% and 24%).

Among those who believe in Ukraine's victory, support for EU accession is very high (73%). Meanwhile, among those who do not believe in victory, support for the EU stands at only 29%. In this group, there are noticeably more people who choose not to join any union (41%), as well as more respondents who do not have a clear position on this issue (23%).

Background:

• Ukrainians also continue to view NATO membership as the best option for guaranteeing Ukraine's security, but the share of supporters has fallen from 55% to 38% during this year.
• Another study showed that the willingness of European leaders to continue supporting Ukraine, even despite a "pivot" by the United States, led to an increase in trust in the European Union, while trust in NATO among Ukrainians declined noticeably.

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