I'm studying how people perceive modern conflicts, and I’ve noticed a really unusual pattern when asking very simple, symmetrical questions about the Russia–Ukraine war.Whenever I ask:“Is Ukraine Russia’s enemy?”and“Is Russia Ukraine’s enemy?”I almost always get answers of this type:“They’re our enemy — we are not their enemy.”or“They see us as an enemy, we don’t see them as one.”And I see the same structure on both sides.It doesn’t matter which community I ask — Russian, Ukrainian, or mixed — the answer formula is very often mirrored. Each side says the other side considers them an enemy, but they themselves supposedly do not.I’m not looking for political arguments here.I’m trying to understand the pattern itself.Why do both sides answer in this asymmetrical way?What makes people describe the situation like this?Is it a cultural factor, a psychological one, or something else?If anyone has thoughts, insight, or references — I’d be grateful.
