Eurostat has not conducted such a study — the information and data have been fabricated by propagandists.
Pro-Russian sources claim that the European Union’s statistical office conducted a survey revealing that 77% of Europeans believe in the unity of Russians, while only 19% supposedly have trust in the unity of Ukrainians. Additionally, they allege that only 38% of respondents think the West should continue supporting Ukraine, with 62% opposing further aid.
However, both the survey and the data cited are entirely fictional. Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Commission, has no such survey among its studies. The topic of «Russian unity» is highly atypical for Eurostat, which generally focuses on objective data and metrics. For example, its recent publications on Russia examined trade levels between the country and the EU, with November 2023 and February 2024 data showing significant changes in exports and imports compared to pre-invasion figures.
The claim that only 38% of Europeans support aid to Ukraine is equally false. Moreover, such a generalized figure cannot represent a reliable sample. Support for Ukraine varies across EU countries but remains high overall. For instance, in May 2024, the European Council on Foreign Relations surveyed nearly 20,000 residents of 15 European countries about their views on the Russia-Ukraine war. When asked whether Europe should increase ammunition and weapon supplies to Ukraine, the majority of respondents answered positively. Support for Ukraine was strongest in Estonia, Sweden, Poland, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. Only in Italy, Greece, and Bulgaria did most respondents oppose the idea.
Interestingly, this fake began circulating online on November 4, coinciding with Russia’s National Unity Day. It is likely that propagandists made up these statistics to remind their audience of the holiday. Meanwhile, in occupied Crimea, activists from the resistance movement «Yellow Ribbon» held pro-Ukrainian rallies under the slogan «Unity is only with Ukraine.»
Read the debunking of another fake based on fabricated statistics in the article Fake: 60% of Foreign Fighters in Ukraine’s Armed Forces Return Home Disabled.
