Vitali Klitschko, the former heavyweight boxer who is now the mayor of Kiev, ventured into dangerous political territory last month: he delicately hinted that Ukraine might have to give up land to end its fight against Russia, Reuters reported.
After a barrage of angry online comments, he walked back his words, writing on Facebook that "territorial concessions run counter to our national interests and we must fight against their implementation to the last."
US President Donald Trump and his negotiators believe that the only way to end Russia’s war in Ukraine is for Kiev to acknowledge in some form that it is not taking back the Ukrainian land that Moscow’s troops have seized. seized after their invasion.
But the Klitschko case - along with public opinion polls - shows that after more than three years of war, most Ukrainians are unwilling to cede territory to Russia in exchange for a ceasefire agreement.
Public attitudes help explain why Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is expected to run for re-election, has resisted pressure from Trump to cede territory in ceasefire talks.
A survey by "Gradus Research" shows that almost three-quarters of the population do not see territorial concessions as a way to end the war.
"Most respondents believe that Russia's main goal in the war is to establish complete control over our country," wrote "Gradus" and adds: "Ukrainian territorial concessions are not perceived as a compromise or a guarantee of peace - on the contrary, they can only strengthen the aggressor".
Russia has denied trying to establish control over Ukraine, but its forces headed straight for Kiev in its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, before Ukrainian troops pushed them back from the capital to their current positions in the south and east.
A Ukrainian poll conducted this week showed that 40% of respondents believe that even in the event of concessions, peace will only be temporary and unsustainable. Another 31% believe that concessions will not lead to peace at all.
Russia currently effectively controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory, including the Crimean peninsula, which it annexed in 2014, as well as large parts of four other regions in eastern and southeastern Ukraine.
According to U.S. negotiators, many of Ukraine’s European allies and even some Ukrainians have privately said that Ukraine would have to concede territorial losses to end the war.
Ukrainians are exhausted and facing a larger and more powerful enemy. Their attempts to push Russia back onto the battlefield failed from the first year of the war, and their Western partners did not provide them with enough military assistance to achieve a decisive victory.
Zelensky acknowledged that Ukraine could not regain its territories by military force, but stressed that formally giving up land would be contrary to the country's constitution.
Opposition to giving up land, however, weakened as the war progressed. Data from the Kiev International Institute of Sociology shows that in March about 39% supported territorial concessions, compared to only 10% in May 2022.
In addition, in March 50% of Ukrainians rejected the idea of giving any land to Russia, which is a decrease from December, when 51% of respondents held this opinion.
Data from another survey - the Razumkov Center - from the period February-March show that nearly 82% of respondents are against any official recognition of the occupied territories.
"The definition of territorial concessions, which more than half of the population can accept with a heavy heart, is a de facto recognition of the occupation without de jure recognition," noted Anton Hrushetsky of the Kiev International Institute of Sociology, adding that the country will need to receive security guarantees in exchange.
Apart from Klitschko's brief intervention, no prominent figure in Ukrainian politics or public life has attempted to encourage a national conversation about the need to acknowledge the loss of territory.
Evgeny Makhda, a political analyst in Kiev, argues that a dialogue between the country's leadership and society about the land concessions is needed to ensure broad acceptance of a potential deal.
"Unfortunately, we have to be realistic," Makhda said of the terms of the deal to end the war, while noting that many Ukrainians still perceive discussions of a compromise over territory as a betrayal.