Over 90% of Ukrainian wants NATO membership

Ukrainian forces are advancing into Kherson, one of the four regions Russia formally annexed days ago despite widespread condemnation.

The gains come after Kyiv’s forces recaptured Lyman over the weekend in Donetsk, another region annexed by Moscow.

Meanwhile, thousands of newly mobilised Russian troops have been sent home as they were deemed unfit for duty.

Poll: Record shows over 90 percent of Ukrainians want NATO membership

Record showing over 90 percent of Ukrainians would like their country to join NATO, a Kyiv-based opinion pollster said, citing a survey it conducted after Ukraine applied to join the military bloc.

The poll of 2,000 people by Rating Group was conducted on Saturday and Sunday after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine was submitting an application for expedited NATO membership.

Rating Group said the percentage of those supporting NATO membership was the highest ever recorded by a survey in Ukraine. Four percent said they would vote against joining the bloc and nine percent said they would not vote.

In November, a poll found 55 percent of Ukrainians supported joining NATO, illustrating how sharply public opinion has changed on the question of the military alliance since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine started in February.

The new poll indicated that support for NATO membership had risen seven percentage points since June.