Much as was the case with Syria, and to a lesser degree Egypt, I wonder if we are getting a true picture of the mood within Ukraine on our excitable daily news programmes. Reporters speak of a ‘revolution’, and certainly there is fury in the capital, Kiev and some other cities in the west of the country, such as Lviv. But what’s happening in the east of Ukraine, and the south? The country’s four largest cities, after Kiev, have been very quiet. A handful of protestors – about 50 – in Donetsk, and vague sounding ‘reports of unrest’ and ‘crowds of hundreds’ in Odessa or Dnepropetrovsk. Meanwhile, one hundred thousand people marched in support of the president in Kharkov. Just, y’know, sayin’.
Incidentally, recent polls have found that between 45% and more than 50% of Ukrainians support the pro-western protests (Euromaidan), while a proportion between 42% and 50% are opposed. Most of Euromaidan’s support is concentrated in Kiev and western Ukraine. So not quite as clear cut as it would appear. You can see those polls here, here and here.
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