The attitude of Romanians towards the Russian-Ukrainian conflict

• 2 out of 3 Romanians are concerned about the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine globally and the use of nuclear weapons.

• Romanians are the most worried about the evolution of their financial situation among the 17 NATO member states analyzed.

• 75% of Romanians believe that we should receive Ukrainian refugees.

• Discussions with family and friends are the main source of information.

Since the beginning of the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the world’s attention has been focused on the situation in Ukraine and the economic sanctions imposed on Russia. However, opinions are divided and attitudes and seem to vary depending on a variety of factors. We find out how Romanians see this conflict and its repercussions from Leo Burnett’s analysis carried out on data from Global Web Index (GWI) survey.

Irina Savu, Data Intelligence Director, Leo Burnett: “We found that Romanians are more concerned about the repercussions of the conflict on the economy and living standards than the likelihood of Romania going to war. In terms of measures taken so far, only one in three Romanians believes that economic sanctions have the power to discourage further war, and more than 70% believe that NATO and the EU need to be more involved, but not with armed forces”.

Concerns about the evolution of the current situation

63% of Romanians are worried about the prospect of war escalating globally or nuclear weapons being involved. However, only half of them believe that this is a real probability.

Regarding Romania’s participation in the war with armed forces, almost 1 in 2 Romanians (43%) consider it a real concern.

As for the effects adjacent to the conflict, Romanians are most concerned about the impact on personal finances (73%), and more than half are already reducing current spending. The UK is the least concerned about this, with only 31% of respondents considering it a threat.

Other issues that concern Romanians the most are: dependence on Russian oil and natural gas (60%), the evolution of the interest rate on banks (50%), as well as the impact that this conflict has on the mental health of the population (57%).

Opinions on measures of involvement in the conflict

73% of Romanians believe that the EU and NATO should be more involved in this conflict. However, when it comes to participating with troops in the war, only 1 in 3 Romanians believe that NATO should send troops to Ukraine, while 26% believe that Romania should get involved with armed forces. Spain noted that 1 in 2 respondents agreed with such measures.

Romanians are the most confident of the countries analyzed regarding the effectiveness of economic sanctions to deter the Russian offensive (35%). Regarding the opinion about the two countries directly involved in the conflict, 26% of Romanians believe that Ukraine should be accepted into the EU, while as many (28%) believe that the Russian population should not be punished for the armed measures taken by the leaders of their country.

Regarding the measures taken by Romania, 75% of Romanians believe that we should receive refugees and 65% that we should send financial and material aid.

When it comes to brands, 65% of Romanians expect them to act on issues related to the conflict: to offer facilities to refugees (56%), to withdraw their commercial activities from Russia (55%) and to donate (47%).

Personal involvement

31% of Romanians say they have already donated to help refugees, and 49% intend to do so in the near future. By comparison, Poland has the highest number of people who have already donated or volunteered – 58%.

There is already an impact for the brands that have been involved – 21% of Romanians say they prefer to buy products from such brands, and 47% intend to take an active interest in this issue.

Sources of information

Discussions with relatives and friends are the main source of information among respondents (63%), followed by TV (59%) and social networks (56%). Half of the respondents stated that they started watching TV more often than before to follow the information about the conflict.

“Romanians’ biggest concern is how the war will affect their financial situation, which is already evident in the fact that more than half have reduced their monthly spending. Although people are more careful about spending during this period, our recommendation to brands is to keep communicating, especially as 63% of Romanians expect brands to engage and assert their position on this conflict. This is an important time for brands to be present and show that they are anchored to the realities of society“, said Maria Ilea, Data Strategist, Leo Burnett Romania