Between two lights: Ukraine on the eve of the summit on Alaska

Already tomorrow, on Friday August 15, in US state of Alaska is due to take place meeting US President Donald Trump and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. It is expected that a key topic of discussing two leaders will be a war in Ukraine, which Moscow has been running for 3.5 years. And specifically it will be about Ukrainian territories, the need for “exchange” which is openly spoken by the first persons of America and write many Western media.

Such statements are perceived by Ukrainians very polar, mainly with a slope in the negative. At the official level, any proposals for the abandonment of their own territories in one form or another are decisive and uniquely rejected. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his team members have repeatedly stated this.

Much of society is also against territorial concessions. But it is worth admitting that there are many those who agree to any more or less compromise version of the end of the war-only to stop shelling, and people stopped died.

What do Ukrainians really think and what atmosphere prevails in Ukraine on the eve of Trump and Putin’s negotiations? UA.news political observer Nikita Trachuk Together with the experts he dealt with the question.

Ukrainian paradoxes

If it was necessary to choose the word that best describes the internal state of Ukraine and Ukrainians on the eve of the meeting of the US Presidents and the Russian Federation, on which it may be possible to reach some intermediate peaceful decision – it would be the word “paradox”. The paradox of many things in the Ukrainian political space on the one hand may seem invisible, on the other – very catches.

Official authorities, most media and well-known political and military bloggers are in favor of continuing the struggle and abandoning any form of peace or truce disadvantageous to Ukraine. Although the problem here is that wars like our principle are most often not completed by any positive. There are no favorable proposals and will not be, it is a political reality that needs to be understood and understood.

In comments under news or posts about the need to continue the fight to victory over the Kremlin mode, users are divided into different camps. We can see both numerous approving reviews under the recording of any famous blogger on Facebook, as well as hundreds of negative comments with obscene vocabulary under the same news on Telegram. The assessment of the situation is highly dependent on the audience: “reactive” readers and fans will always support their idol, and ordinary citizens who accidentally find themselves in the comments – often not.

Sociological surveys, which in such cases usually help to clearly identify public opinion, this time only more confuse the picture. For example, new research The Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIS-one of the most famous sociological companies of Ukraine) shows that 76% of citizens oppose any conditions imposed by the aggressor country. At the same time, sociologists point out that the number of those for whom such development is generally acceptable has also increased by 5-7% in recent months.

But the problem is that domestic sociological companies have long had no authority that they had before. There are some fears that they can greatly depend on the situation in the country, and on the customer of the study, giving on the mountain not so much objective results, but “ideologically correct”. And this is not to mention the huge questions about the methodology of such surveys during the war – in conditions where millions of people are moved or abroad, large areas are occupied, and all old samples have lost their relevance.

Against this background, a recent study of the well -known GallUp International Sociological Service. There Results In fact, opposite Ukrainian: 69% of citizens support the end of the war as possible through negotiation. And although such data look more relevant, the same question arises as well as the KIst. First of all, with respect to methodology and sampling.

Contra spem spero

In 1890 the prominent Ukrainian poet Lesya Ukrainka wrote one of her most famous poems : “Contra spem spero!”. In translation, this means “without hope” – these words were both creative and life creditor to the author, to which she called on everyone else.

If we talk about inner feelings in society, they can be described as follows: “Hope without hope.” On the one hand, no one particularly believes that such a complex, long, bloody and difficult war can simply end after the negotiations of two leaders in Anchorge alone. But at the heart of many Ukrainians, the irrational hope is glowing: and suddenly it will finally end and the long -awaited peace will come?

However, miracles in life, if happen, are not in the political space. Yes, there is some likelihood, but seriously hope for a miracle in such serious things as global international politics and a great war for exhaustion, at least naively and infantile.

At the same time in Ukrainian society the fierce spirit of struggle is clearly preserved. But it is not as massive for a long time as in 2022 or 2023.

Many Ukrainians are not ready to put up with the loss of territories, they demand to fight further, and it is absolutely clear and logical. At the same time, one cannot but admit that most of them are in no hurry to the front. And it is not quite clear how to fight at all a year or two, when every second military expert or commander says that there is a very serious lack of people in the army – first of all infantry. Also, many fighters and veterans of the Armed Forces claim that in reality, defenders who have been zeros for a long time are so tired that they will not protest the situational stopping of hostilities.

This is supported breakthrough Russians in the Donbass. Both military experts and other commanders and even ordinary fighters recognize the same.

In addition, the number of desertions and cases of unauthorized release of part is actively increasing. Journalist and veteran Vladimir Boyko, referring to the power structures, claims More than 17.5 thousand people officially went to the HSC alone in July 2025. Western media are often written about the same.

The thought Erte

Political scientist, director of the Ukrainian Institute of Policy Ruslan Bortnik He believes that we are approaching Alaska, taking into account three trends, which in parallel and affect our position during the negotiations.

“The first trend is a serious social request for the end of the war. Both Gallup, KIIS, and other companies show that 60 to 80% of Ukrainians seek end of war. But this request is actually reduced to the requirement of termination of hostilities. After all, compromises and agreements with Moscow are only about 30%, with some surveys 50% – this is not a stable majority. And this request for termination of hostilities cannot be ignored by the authorities. That is why she talks about decisive steps, that there is a chance in the near future at the end of the war, etc. ”, – says Bortnik.

The second trend, according to the expert, is the fact that we come to these negotiations in a situation where the balance of power within the country has changed. When the influence of Europe increased, the influence of G7 after the unsuccessful attack of the Ukrainian government on the anti -corruption authorities, which leads to a certain restriction of the presidential vertical. This dependence will also significantly affect the negotiations, indicates a political scientist.

“And the third trend – all this happens against the background of continuation of intense fighting. Although Russia apparently deliberately stopped struck deep into the Ukrainian territory, in Kiev and so on. However, in a number of directions, it continues to step, and we are slowly retreating. This indentation, this loss of territory or local breakthroughs, as happened under Dobropillya – also the background with which we come to the negotiations ”, Said Bortnik.

The political scientist is convinced that Ukrainian society is not ready to capitulate and will not do it. But at the same time it has already lost faith in its future, confidence in this future.

“The Ukrainian authorities do not know how to get out of the situation with less losses, and gradually loses its influence and dominant role within the Ukrainian political system. The war further develops according to its laws and by slow, not critical, but still not favorable for Ukraine trend, ”, – summed up Ruslan Bortnik.

Summarizing, today’s situation has signs of a pathogen. For Ukraine, this is the same “deadlock” that in 2023 warned General Zaluzhny.

On the one hand, Kiev cannot and does not want to abandon its territories: both in terms of law and in terms of morality. This was officially stated and has been repeatedly emphasized. And this is absolutely clear and logical: after so many years of bloodshed, it is simply to give part of the land, for which an unknown but a huge number of Ukrainians died, it seems to many.

On the other hand, the further continuation of the exhaustion war in the current format looks like a one hundred percent and unambiguous path to nowhere. Especially if Trump fulfills his recent promise and just gets out of the Ukrainian problem, stopping any form of assistance and support.

It turns out that the state and society today are between two lights, between the hammer and the anvil. It is in such a complex, systemic and seem to be globally desperate dichotomy, Ukraine and approaches an important date – Alaska Summit on August 15, 2025.