Turkey has the highest balance of positive attitudes of Ukrainians among the countries of the Middle East — Experts Club

Turkey has the highest balance of positive and negative attitudes of Ukrainians among the Middle East countries represented in the study — 44.9 percentage points. More than half of the respondents - 52.3% - have a positive attitude towards the country. At the same time, a neutral attitude prevails in relation to Saudi Arabia and Jordan, and Lebanon is the only country in this group with a negative balance. This is evidenced by the results of the third wave of the study "Attitudes of Ukrainians to the countries of the world", conducted by Active Group together with Experts Club, reports the information and analytical center Experts Club.

52.3% have a positive attitude towards Turkey of respondents, neutral — 37.6%, negative — 7.4%, another 2.7% could not decide. The balance of positive and negative evaluations is 44.9 percentage points. against 49.4 percent in March 2026 and 44.3 percent in August 2025. Thus, after the spring growth, the indicator returned to approximately last year's level.

Israel ranks second among the countries presented on the slide in terms of the share of positive assessments — 35.6%. 39.7% of respondents are neutral about it, 21.9% are negative, and another 2.7% are undecided. The balance is 13.7 percentage points. and continues to decrease: in August 2025 it was equal to 31 percentage points, and in March 2026 it was 18.9 percentage points.

Saudi Arabia is positively evaluated by 29% of Ukrainians, while the majority - 57.5% - take a neutral position. The share of negative evaluations is 9%, and the balance is plus 20 percentage points. against 19.8 percent in march Compared to August 2025, when it was 25.6 p.p., the indicator remains lower.

About Jordan, 65% of respondents take a neutral position, which is the largest indicator in this regional group. 20.5% of respondents have a positive attitude towards the country, 7.2% have a negative attitude, and another 7.2% are undecided. The balance of positive and negative evaluations is 13.3 percentage points.

Lebanon has the lowest result. 12.9% of Ukrainians evaluate the country positively, 22.1% negatively, and 57.3% neutrally. The balance is minus 9.2 percentage points. and gradually worsens: from minus 6.6 per cent. in August 2025 to minus 7.7 p.p. in March and minus 9.2 percent. in August 2026.

The founder of the Experts Club information and analytical center Maksym Urakin emphasized the importance of constant communication of foreign countries with the Ukrainian audience.

"The first recommendation is to regularly show specific cases, specific actions. The second is to be open to questions and requests from the mass media and the public," Urakin said. He also recommended diplomatic missions to systematically inform Ukrainians about the specific results of cooperation.

Director of the research company Active Group Oleksandr Pozniy drew attention to the need to combine informational presence with the practical development of bilateral relations.

"It is better to develop not only general awareness. First of all, business associations, the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs need to work," said Pozniy.

In his opinion, economic and diplomatic institutions should more actively use the potential of markets where Ukraine can expand cooperation.

In general, the study shows that the perception of the countries of the Middle East by Ukrainians differs significantly. Turkey has a distinctly positive balance, with regard to Saudi Arabia and Jordan, neutrality prevails, Israel's assessments are more polarized, and with regard to Lebanon, negative assessments prevail over positive ones.

The survey was conducted in August 2026 by the method of self-completion of online questionnaires in the SunFlowerSociology panel among 800 citizens of Ukraine aged 18 and older. According to the organizers, the sample is representative by age, gender and region, and the maximum theoretical statistical error is 3.5%. This is the third wave of the survey after the surveys of August 2025 and March 2026.