Business news from Ukraine

Finland continues to enjoy one of the highest levels of positive perception among Ukrainians: in August 2026, 71.3% of respondents viewed the country positively, while only 2% viewed it negatively. Compared to March, the share of positive assessments has decreased slightly, while the share of neutral responses has increased, according to the Experts Club Information and Analytical Center.

According to the results of the August survey, 34.1% of Ukrainians view Finland entirely positively, and 37.2% view it mostly positively. A neutral stance is held by 25.4% of those surveyed. 1.8% view the country mostly negatively, only 0.2% view it entirely negatively, and another 1.4% were undecided.

The balance between positive and negative assessments stands at plus 69.3 percentage points. Positive attitudes thus outweigh negative ones by more than 35 times, characterizing public perception of Finland as distinctly favorable.

In March 2026, 76.2% of respondents had a positive attitude toward Finland: 38% viewed it entirely positively and 38.2% viewed it mostly positively. A neutral attitude was expressed by 21.4% of respondents, a negative one by about 1.1%, and another 1.2% were undecided.

Thus, over the course of five months, the positive segment decreased by 4.9 percentage points—from 76.2% to 71.3%. The share of negative assessments increased by approximately 0.9 percentage points, while neutral responses rose by 4 percentage points. The balance between positive and negative attitudes decreased from plus 75.1 to plus 69.3 percentage points, respectively.

The most notable decline was in the share of respondents with a completely positive attitude—from 38% to 34.1%. The share of mostly positive responses changed much less—from 38.2% to 37.2%. In other words, the bulk of the changes was not due to a shift toward a negative attitude, but rather to an increase in the neutral segment.

Alexander Pozniy, director of the research firm Active Group, previously attributed Finland’s consistently high ratings to the trust and predictability of its image among Ukrainians.

“Ukrainians quite clearly distinguish between countries based on the level of trust and predictability of their policies. Where there is consistency and a clear position, a stable positive attitude is formed. That is why countries like Finland maintain high ratings regardless of short-term fluctuations in the news,” Pozniy noted.

The August wave shows a certain softening of assessments, but no fundamental change in public perception. More than seven out of ten respondents continue to view Finland positively, while the share of negative responses remains at just 2%.

The previous wave of the survey was conducted in March 2026 among 800 Ukrainian citizens aged 18 and older using an online questionnaire. The sample was representative in terms of age, gender, and region.