Fewer Americans see Russian military as 'critical threat' to US, shows poll

New Delhi: As Russia’s ongoing war with Ukraine passed the one-year mark last month, fewer Americans now see Moscow’s military power as a “critical threat” to the United States, according to a poll.

Just 51 per cent of Americans viewed the Russian military as a “critical threat” compared to 59 per cent who said the same in the weeks leading up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, according to a new Gallup poll, which was released this week.

The poll suggests that the decline may be related to the prolonged battle with Ukraine.

Many military experts thought that Russia would overwhelm Ukraine, but it has made gains only in limited parts of the country. Those gains have come at a heavy cost in Russian military personnel and equipment.

Americans who said the Russian military was “an important but not critical threat” stayed about the same, ticking up slightly from 35 per cent to 37 per cent, while those who said it was “not an important threat at all” doubled from 6 per cent to 12 per cent. Just 1 per cent of respondents had no opinion on the matter.

Americans’ overall views of Russia reached a new low with just 9 per cent having a very favourable or mostly favourable view of the nation, and 90 per cent having a mostly unfavourable or very unfavorable view. Just 1 per cent of respondents had no opinion.

Russia’s 9 per cent favourability makes it just the fourth country with a favourability rating in the single digits, along with North Korea, Iran and Iraq.

Downgraded opinion of Russia

One of the likely reasons behind Americans’ downgraded opinion of Russia’s military might has been its inability to accomplish what many expected to be a less arduous task in facing off with the Ukrainian military during the initial invasion of Ukraine.

During the past decade, with Putin in power for a second time, the US and Russia have become increasingly at odds. This largely stems from US criticisms of Russia’s human rights record and annexation of the Crimean peninsula as well as concerns about Russian meddling in US elections.

Asked how much of a threat the Russia-Ukraine conflict presents to US vital interests, 56 per cent of Americans describe it as a “critical threat,” 36 per cent say it is “important but not critical,” and 8 per cent do not believe it represents an important threat.

The perception of the conflict as a critical threat is up slightly from 52 per cent a year ago and is much higher than the 44 per cent measured in 2015.

With inputs from agencies

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