Most Hungarians Think the War is Ukraine's Problem

Mexicans, Argentinians, Peruvians, Colombians and Chileans, for example, are more interested in what is happening in the country under attack than Hungarians, according to an international survey by Ipsos.

Compared with the data from the countries surveyed, a much higher proportion of our fellow countrymen (28 percentage points higher than the international average) think that events in Ukraine are a domestic matter in which we do not need to interfere. The data also shows that the Hungarian population is not as afraid of the Russians as the global public, but only 38% of Hungarians would make a financial sacrifice for the sovereignty of a country.

Sunday marks two months since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has shaken up not only Europe but the world - but a recent Ipsos survey shows that people in different countries see the situation very differently.

The poll, conducted in 27 countries, found that 89% of Japanese said they paid close attention to news about the war, while Malaysians were the least interested. More than half of the Hungarian population, 65%, read, watch or listen to the reports, while in Poland, another neighbouring country to Ukraine, the figure is 77%.

Further findings of the survey include that

• In Saudi Arabia, Hungary, Malaysia, and India, the opinion that “the problems of Ukraine are none of our business and we should not interfere” prevails. It is also shared by half of those surveyed in Mexico, Israel, and Argentina. In contrast, except for Hungary, between 65% and 80% in all eight other European Union member countries surveyed, as well as in Great Britain, the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, and South Korea disagree.
• While more than four in five in Poland, Sweden, Great Britain, and India agree that their country should support sovereign countries when attacked, only about half in Mexico, Hungary and Brazil do.
• More than three in four in Great Britain, Japan, the U.S., Australia, and Poland believe that inaction in Ukraine will encourage Russia to attack other countries vs. less than half in Hungary and Israel.