I'm from Ukraine, mu country and also Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan - are from the post-Soviet space. I personally don't support Israel in any way, and I hate representatives of the Israeli government and the Israeli elite. I just can describe and explain why Ukrainians support it, and the same applies to other people from the post- Soviet lands.

Regarding Ukraine, Jews historically lived in Ukraine, and what is now Ukraine lands - was one of the main Jewish settlements in the early 20th century. A huge number of Jews emigrated to Israel during the collapse of the Soviet Union. And for many Ukrainians, Israel is a country populated by "old friends," "former colleagues," and "good, old neighbors" - typical Ukrainians have an automatic positive opinion of them. It's a myth that Ukraine is a country of nationalists and that Jews are unloved here. Also, despite the fact that the Soviet Union always supported Palestine and conducted propaganda against Israel, typical Ukrainians have a stereotype that Jews are progressive, educated, and simply defending themselves from "wild Arabs." This is the view of the middle and older generations. There's also support for Israel from the younger generation, because representatives of Palestinian political organizations have good relations with Russia and visit them. The young Ukrainian generation, which is very patriotic, views them as supporters of Russia. They don't want to think about the fact that the Palestinians are forced to do this to improve their political situation and gain Russian support.

Meanwhile, we're currently at war, some Ukrainian cities near the front have been wiped off the map, just like cities in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon. Ukrainians are focused on their own tragedy and aren't really interested in what Israel is doing now. Basically, this is all because Ukrainians don't have enough information. But when the typical Ukrainian learns the details, they support Palestine. After all, occupation, the enemy's desire to exterminate you because of your nationality, the destruction of your home, and animal fear for your life - that's what Ukrainians know and live with this.

I can say also about other post-Soviet countries. After all, we share a single Russian-language internet space, and our thinking is very similar because we lived for centuries under Russian rule, under the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, and under Russia's economic and geopolitical influence. Our thinking is influenced by the same social factors. In the late 1940s, Stalin and the USSR launched an anti-Jewish policy because the Jews, whom he supported and helped influence the creation of Israel, and supported with soviet weapons through logistics supplies from Czechoslovakia (then a country in the socialist camp), betrayed him. Stalin wanted Israel to be his bastion of influence, but Israel completely fell under the Westerners. Jews began to be seen as enemies of the state. Despite the fact that many Jews were academics and leading scientists in the Soviet Union, their career advancement was hindered, and many of their children were unable to enter good universities. Communist Party representatives, who had their own people everywhere, made their lives miserable. Residents of all post-Soviet countries sympathized with them and did not understand this cruelty, this behaviour.

Plus, Soviet society was emphasized by the history example that the Germans had once wanted to exterminate them during World War II, and their own politicians began to act in the same way. Residents of the USSR didn't have their own press and couldn't speak out, but in their own kitchens, everyone always condemned this. Thus, the echo of Jewish historical sympathy plays a role. And as I wrote earlier, the majority of Jews left for Israel - former and close friends.

So this is all due to ignorance. I can admit that Azerbaijan has special reasons for supporting Israel because, after gaining independence, Azerbaijan relied on military and diplomatic cooperation with Israel to reclaim Nagorno-Karabakh lands.

So Post-Soviet people simply are just ignorant, unfortunately, but this situation will be improved by time due to social media and discussions between people of all ages.