The proportion of Ukrainians declaring a positive attitude towards Poland has fallen dramatically over the last year: from a net positive 92 percentage points in early 2023 to just 26 now, according to a new poll.
Respondents indicated that recent blockades of the border by Polish truckers and farmers – who have been protesting against cheaper Ukrainian competition – is a primary reason for the decline in positive sentiment.
A regular survey by the Razumkov Centre, a Kyiv-based think tank, conducted in territories controlled by Ukraine found that in March 2024 just over 58% of Ukrainians declared a positive attitude towards Poland. That was down from 94% in early 2023 and 79% as recently as January this year.
Over that period, Poland has fallen from being the most positively viewed country among those included in the study in early 2023 to now only the 15th, above just Hungary (29%). Currently, Canada (93%), Latvia (93%) and the United Kingdom (92%) enjoy the most positive sentiment.
Meanwhile, the proportion of Ukrainians expressing negative sentiment towards Poland has risen from 2.4% in early 2023 to 32% now. That means Poland’s net figure (of positive minus negative sentiment) has fallen from just under 92 to 26, the second lowest among all countries included
Only Hungary had a worse result, with a net score of -34. Canada (90) achieved the best score. Attitudes towards the United States have also significantly deteriorated, falling from a net positive of 84 last August to 67 in March 2024.
In addition to the question regarding general attitudes, respondents were also asked to rate the impact of specific external events and processes on Ukraine on a five-point scale from 1 to 5, where 1 represents no impact and 5 stands for a very strong negative impact.
The event that Ukrainians rated as having the most negative impact was the blockade of the border with Poland, which received a 4.5 rating. Ukrainians also negatively assessed the increase in US domestic policy tensions, which has led to a slowdown in military and financial aid to Ukraine, rating it at 4.4.
Polish hauliers and farmers have been intermittently blocking the flow of goods for many months. The truckers are demanding the reinstatement of a permit system that would limit the entry of Ukrainian transport companies into Poland, while farmers want a ban on the import of Ukrainian grain.
The protests have been condemned by Ukraine, which in February announced “retaliatory action” if Poland did not end the blockades.
Protests by Polish farmers against Ukrainian imports are "about politics, not grain" and show "an erosion of solidarity" with Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression, says @ZelenskyyUa.
Farmers are today again blocking roads and border crossingshttps://t.co/gfa8zSNZHQ
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) February 20, 2024
During the early stages of the war, positive sentiment towards Poland soared among Ukrainians as it became the primary destination receiving Ukrainian refugees and the Polish government provided staunch diplomatic, humanitarian and military support to Kyiv.
The new government, led by Donald Tusk, that took power in Warsaw in December has pledged to continue such support for Ukraine.
However, like its Law and Justice (PiS) predecessor, it has warned that such backing cannot come at the cost of Poland’s own national interest.
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Main image credit: Cezary Aszkielowicz / Agencja Wyborcza.pl
Alicja Ptak is senior editor at Notes from Poland and a multimedia journalist. She previously worked for Reuters.
