Speaking of Russia and Ukraine, it has been more than three years in the blink of an eye. From the start of February 2022 to the end of September 2025, the front line is still in a stalemate. Missile drones call out every day, and casualty figures are displayed every day.
The Russians should have regarded Ukraine as the number one thorn. After all, they are fighting each other every day and under continuous artillery fire. But as soon as the recent polls came out, everyone was dumbfounded: Ukraine ranked third, the United States fell to fourth, and it was Poland that really made the Russians gnashing their teeth.
This small neighboring country has a population of just over 30 million, and its economic and military strength is dwarfed by that of Russia and the United States. How did it become the target of public criticism? It's right to think about it. Hatred is not about who hits hard, but about who pokes deep. Russians' resentment against Poland has accumulated for hundreds of years, and many new accounts have been added in recent years.
After three years of sawing, why is Ukraine not so eye-catching?
The battle has been fought to this point, the Russian army has been pushing in the east, news in the Donbas region every day, the ruins of the cities are mountainous, and civilians are displaced. By the way, Ukraine as a direct opponent, the Russians should hate to sneeze. But the latest survey of the Levada Center shows that only 43% of Russians list Ukraine as the most hostile country, the figure is not high.
Why? Because in the eyes of many people, Ukraine is not an outsider, but a brother of the Slavs. Kiev has a very high status in the history of East Slav and is called the "mother of the cities of Rus". Russians have studied these history textbooks since childhood and feel that the two countries are originally one family and are still connected even after they are separated.
In Crimea in 2014, Russian officials publicized it as "going home", not aggression, but reunion. Even if the fight is raging now, many Russian people still feel that this is an internal contradiction, like two brothers in the family fighting to divide their family property, and it has not reached the point of life and death.
Moreover, Ukraine has been pulled away by the West over the years, the pro-European anti-Russian tone is increasing, but the pro-Russian in the country has not completely disappeared.In those places in Donetsk and Lugansk, the Russians feel that it is their own territory, the Ukrainian government there pressures pro-Russian forces, instead make the Russians feel that Ukraine is ignored by the United States.
In polls, Russians' negative sentiments towards Ukraine are more regret than hatred. They feel that this battle should not have been fought if it weren't for NATO's eastward expansion. In contrast, Ukraine's "hatred" is a little lower because it is too close, too familiar, and it cannot be hated. Just like the neighbor's child is naughty, you are angry, but you won't really kill.
In the past three years, the Russian economy has been burdened with sanctions and the cost of living has risen. Young people are more concerned about prices and conscription rather than cursing Ukraine every day. The opponent of Ukraine is close at hand, but not so distant.
Why did this old Jianghu in America quietly step aside?
What about the United States? Russians have known about this since childhood, old opponents of the Cold War. NATO's eastward expansion, economic blockade, and color revolution are all shadows of the United States. After the war broke out between Russia and Ukraine in 2022, the United States took the lead in military aid to Ukraine. There was a continuous flow of F-16 fighter jets and ATACMS missiles. The sanctions list was long. The Russian ruble once collapsed, and energy exports were stuck.
Strangely enough, in the Levada poll in June 2025, only 40% of Russians thought the U.S. was the most hostile, a sharp drop from 76% last year.
The first thing he took office was to talk about and reduce military aid to Ukraine.Polls show that many people think that the United States is not so terrible now, because the Trump administration is pulling closer and energy cooperation is starting to loose.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russians were accustomed to breaking their arms with the United States, the United Nations Security Council whispered every day, and the trade war came to us, but both sides broke through the road. The Russians accused the United States of "global hegemony", but also knew that the United States was busy with the Middle East, Taiwan and domestic elections, and there was no room to focus on Russia.
In 2025, U.S. inflation was high, Congress argued about spending cuts, Ukraine’s aid was stuck, and Russians felt that the U.S. had no time to care about itself.
The figure of 40% shows that the United States has been downgraded from the "number one devil" to the "old enemy." There is hatred, but it is not so sharp. During the three-year war, the shadow of the United States was behind it, but the Russians were more angry at those who came directly to the door than those who came remotely.
Why does Poland, a troublesome neighbor, always step on Russian minefields?
Poland, located in the middle of Russia and Western Europe, is sensitive enough. In the 2025 poll, Poland ranks at the forefront of the list of hostilities and even outperforms Ukraine and the United States. Why? The history is too long to count. Levada data show that 55% of Russians view Germany as the most hostile, but Poland follows it closely, in many polls it is second or third.
Poland has a smaller population, a smaller army, but the greatest hostility to Russia, the Russians feel it is the rapid pioneer of NATO in 1999. joining NATO in 1999, 2004 into the European Union, Poland turned to the West quickly, more thoroughly than Ukraine. domestic anti-Russia sentiment increased, school textbooks all divide Poland's old account, Russia became an eternal rebel.
Historically, the Russia-Poland conflict began in the Middle Ages. In the 13th century, after the Mongolians invaded, the Lithuania Commonwealth rose and expanded eastward with the Duchy of Moscow. At the beginning of the 17th century, Poland took advantage of Russia's "chaotic era" to invade and occupied Moscow in 1610. The Kremlin became theirs and supported the puppet tsar. This humiliation is remembered by Russians to this day. National Unity Day is celebrated every year on November 4 to commemorate the expulsion of Poles.
In the 18th century, Russia in turn united with Prussia and Austria and divided Poland three times. In 1772, 1793, and 1795, Poland was erased from the map. After 123 years of Poland's subjugation, Russia became an oppressor, and the Poles gritted their teeth in hatred.
After Poland's independence in 1918, the Soviet War in 1919-1921, Poland won, and the Riga peace agreement left the Soviet Union losing Belarus and Ukraine.In 1939, when the Second World War began, the Soviet Union and Germany divided Poland again, more than 20,000 Polish officers in Katyn Woods were shot and buried.
After the Cold War, Poland turned to the West and became an anti-Russian bridge. Russia fought, and Poland was at the forefront: weapons aid, refugee placement, training soldiers, all packaged. by September 2025, Poland gave Ukraine military aid of more than 5 billion euros, tank missile sources continued.
Geographically, Poland is next to the Kaliningrad enclave, and that Russian land is sandwiched by Poland and Lithuania, making it strategically extremely fragile. Poland has signed an agreement with the United States to deploy Patriot missiles and possibly even nuclear weapons, which is a direct threat to Russia.
The Russians feel that Ukraine is the battlefield, the United States is the backdrop, and Poland is the NATO’s “frontpost” and knocks on the border every day.
In the polls, Poland has a high degree of hatred because it not only has old historical scores, but also adds to the current congestion. Ordinary Russian people watch the news and see that Poland is always holding anti-Russian rallies and tearing down Soviet monuments. They feel that this country is petty, but they always find fault.
Old hatred and new hatred are mixed together, how to solve the problem between Russia and Poland
The opponents of Russia and Poland take turns to be victims, whoever is strong and who bullies, and the hatred is like a snowball, getting bigger and bigger. In 2025, just after the Polish presidential election, a new government came to power, continued to push Ukraine into the EU and NATO, and expanded sanctions against Russia. On the Russian side, the supply line in Kaliningrad may be blocked at any time, and the navy is cruising in the Baltic Sea, extremely nervous.
China has been promoting peace over the years and has held talks with Russia and Ukraine many times, but the variable of Poland has made matters more complicated. Poland relies on the European Union for its economy and NATO for its military strength, but domestic public opinion's aid to Ukraine has begun to weaken. A 2025 survey shows that 51% of Poles feel that there are too many refugees and are not worth the money. However, the official position has not changed and continues to be the vanguard of anti-Russia.
The Russians 'hostility towards Poland is not only in history textbooks, but also mixed with realistic anxiety. The Russian economy withstood the three-year war, but all Western pressure was transmitted from Poland. When Poland held the rotating presidency of the European Union, it promoted anti-Russian resolutions. Russians felt that this small country always liked to show off.
In comparison to the global game of the United States, Poland's enmity is more grounded and more direct. Ukraine is a relative in the battlefield, the United States is a far-away opponent, but Poland is the head of the doorstep, and every day we meet and argue.
What should I do if this hatred goes back? Russia will not give in easily, and Poland will not stop. The thorn in NATO's eastward expansion still exists. The Russians are now more wary of Poland's "little moves", such as intelligence sharing and border military exercises. After three years of bloody battles, Russia did not take all its fire on Ukraine, but targeted the old problem of Poland.
To be honest, hatred does not come from nothing but is overlapping. The Russian people's polls reflect a collective memory: Poland is always at a critical moment. From the occupation of Moscow to the threat of Kaliningrad, it is all a pain point. If the future is Russia and Ukraine peace talks, this variable in Poland must be flat first, otherwise the lint is more and more dead.
It is also ironic to think of the big-power game, the small-power mess is the worst. The Russians hate Poland, not because it is strong, but because it is always on the weak side. Three years later, this war did not make the Russians hate Ukraine more, but instead turned the old bill against Poland a new page.
The Russians now look at Poland, like looking at the neighbor who always loves to challenge, hoping that one day can sit down and count the old bills, do not add new enemies.