Economic pessimism, low trust in institutions, increased concern about developments in the Middle East and clear opposition to Ukraine's military support are recorded for Cyprus in the Eurobarometer published on Friday, ahead of Europe Day. The Spring 2026 Eurobarometer survey, conducted between 12 March and 1 April 2026, is based on 506 interviews in Cyprus, in the context of a pan-European sampling of 26,415 citizens.
According to the findings in the field of economy, more than half of Cypriots (53%) have a negative assessment of the current state of the Cypriot economy, while only 46% judge it positively, in contrast to 60% and 38% at the level of the EU-27 member states. Pessimism is intensifying for the coming year, as51% expect the country's economic situation to deteriorate, an increase of 23 percentage points compared to the previous measurement of autumn 2025, while only 11% predict an improvement, with the index showing a drop of four points compared to 2025.
Despite concern about the overall economy, citizens appear more restrained about their own situation. A total of 75% assess the financial situation of their household positively, while 60% believe that their personal professional situation will remain stable next year.
As the most important problems facing the country, Cypriots highlight high prices and the cost of living at a rate of 36%, the conflict in the Middle East at 30%, the economic situation at 24%, immigration at 23% and housing at 21% of the answers. At the European Union level, the situation in the Middle East is also recorded as the first concern with 35%, followed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine at 27% and migration at 26% of responses.
Trust rates in institutions remain particularly low. Only 31% say they trust the Government and 22% trust Parliament, with distrust of Parliament expressed in 74% of the responses. The balance of trust in the European Union is also negative, as 39% say they trust it and 54% say they do not, despite a slight improvement compared to the previous measurement by 4 percentage points.
At the same time, 36% of Cypriots say they have a positive image of the EU, nine points from the average of the "27". In any case, the percentage in Cyprus is six points more positive towards the Union than in the autumn of 2025, with 57% currently appearing optimistic about the future of the Union.
Of particular interest are the data on European identity. While the vast majority of Cypriots declare a strong attachment to their town or village with an overwhelming percentage of 92% and to the country by 95%, only 52% feel attachment to the EU and only 45% to "Europe" as a broader concept, marking one of the lowest percentages in the Union.
In terms of citizens' priorities for EU action, Cypriots place emphasis on ensuring peace and stability at a rate of 48%, job creation at 39%, access to housing at 30% (almost double the EU average of 16%), strengthening security and defence at 32% and managing irregular migration at 29%, With the last two percentages also slightly higher than at the European level.
In the field of digital security, more than half of Cypriots, at 53%, believe that large online platforms are not doing enough to remove illegal or harmful content, while 45% believe that not enough is being done on the part of platforms to protect users.
Strong differences from the European average are recorded in the attitude of Cypriots towards Ukraine. Although 77% agree with the reception of refugees and 70% with economic and humanitarian aid, the majority reject sanctions against Russia and military support for Kiev. Specifically, only 30% support economic sanctions with the European percentage reaching 70%, while 62% disagree, with the corresponding percentage at EU level at 23%. Support for financing military equipment in Ukraine is even lower, with only 18% in favour and 78% against, with European percentages at 56% and 39% respectively. Acceptance of Ukraine's accession to the EU is also low, with 41% of Cypriots compared to 56% of Europeans agreeing.
As far as the European budget is concerned, Cypriots want EU spending to be directed mainly to employment, social policy and public health at 52% of responses, education and youth at 52%, housing at 51% and security and defence at 43%.
CNA
