Nearly six out of ten Americans approve of continued military support for Ukraine, a Golden/TIPP Poll of 1,358 Americans nationwide completed on Friday showed.
The online survey was conducted from February 1 to 3.
The survey’s credibility interval (CI) is +/- 2.8 percentage points, meaning the study is accurate to within ± 2.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Americans been surveyed.
The survey asked respondents: “Do you approve or disapprove of continued military support for the Ukraine war?” The results read as follows:
- 30% approve strongly,
- 29% approve somewhat,
- 16% disapprove somewhat,
- 14% disapprove strongly, and
- 11% not sure
TIPP had asked the same question in its January poll when 59% approved and 28% disapproved.
The poll shows that the intensity of support has stayed the same.
Those “approve strongly” rose from 27% in January to 30% in February, while those “approve somewhat” slipped from 33% in January to 29% in February.
Context
Americans find themselves between a rock and a hard place on this issue.
While on the one hand, they are sympathetic and feel that Ukraine has been unjustly invaded and must be supported, they also fear that the support could escalate the war and push Russia, a nuclear power, towards more aggression.
The U.S. has been Ukraine’s most important ally in the war, committing $50 billion in humanitarian, financial, and security assistance – far more than any other country.
Earlier this month, the U.S. pledged more than $2 billion in military aid for Ukraine. The package will likely include longer-range rockets for the first time and support equipment for Patriot missile systems and precision-guided munitions.
Responding to the Pentagon’s announcement of a new $2.175 billion aid package for Kyiv on Friday, Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, made a chilling threat of nuclear “retaliatory strikes” on a Russian military-owned TV channel the very next day.
Medvedev’s threat follows Russian President Vladimir Putin’s veiled nuclear threat on Thursday as he likened the war to the battle of Stalingrad in WWII. As he expressed his displeasure with Germany’s decision to supply Ukraine with tanks, Putin stated that Russia, like Stalingrad, faced German tanks, but this time Moscow had nukes.
Under The Hood
The survey shows that support for military aid to Ukraine varies significantly by party affiliation. In February, while three out of every four Democrats (77%) approved military support, only 45% of Republicans and 46% of independents approved aiding Ukraine.
The chart below shows that the data is remarkably stable over time.
A majority of all ideologies approved of military support for Ukraine in February.
However, there are significant differences.
Three out of four liberals approve (78% in January and 74% in February) of military support.
On the other hand, approval is the lowest among conservatives, even though it improved from 44% in January to 53% in February.
Moderates are between the two extremes, with approval for military support slipping from 60% in January to 55% in February.
The approval of military support is similar across the country’s regions, except in the South, where it is significantly lower. In February, the approval levels by region read:
- 63% in the Northeast,
- 62% in the Midwest,
- 55% in the South, and
- 62% in the West.
In the foreseeable future, the U.S. has to play the delicate balance of supporting Ukraine and not escalating the conflict.
For now, American public support is strong. However, American leadership can’t count on it if the war escalates and NATO is dragged into direct conflict. As the world’s superpower, the U.S. can’t be a bystander and must actively find diplomatic strategies to end the conflict.
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Republished with permission from TIPP Insights
