Washington (AP) – Many Americans are still wondering if President Joe Biden is showing enough strength to respond to Russia’s war in Ukraine, though most applaud the steps the United States has already taken and few wanted to involve American troops in combat.
A poll by the Associated Press NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that 54% of Americans think Biden is “tough enough” to respond to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 36% thought his approach was right, while 8% said it was too harsh.
But as the war lasted, the willingness of Americans to take part was somewhat reduced. 32% of Americans say the United States has an important role to play in the conflict. It was down from 40% last month, although it was higher than the 26% said in February. A further 49% say the US should play a smaller role.
The findings highlight the enigma at the White House. As images of Russia’s attacks on civilians and hospitals spread around the world, there is pressure to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin and help the millions of Ukrainians who are being attacked in their home country or running for security reasons. But Biden must also handle the threat of escalation with Putin, raising alarm levels about Russia’s use of nuclear weapons and avoiding the United States engaging in a broader conflict.
“Given the potential despair of President Putin and the Russian leadership, given the military failures they have so far, none of us can easily understand the potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or low nuclear weapons capacity.This was announced by CIA Director William Burns in a speech at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Burns added that “so far we have not seen any practical evidence” of Russia’s nuclear escalation.
The White House provided more than $ 2 billion in weapons and led Western sanctions that devastated Russia’s economy. Biden excluded sending U.S. troops, a decision supported by a majority of Americans.
Polls and follow-up interviews with respondents indicate that many Americans responding to images of Ukrainian killings and alleged war crimes committed by Russian forces want more action. to stop Putin. The majority – 57% – say they believe Putin ordered his troops to commit war crimes. Only 6% say no, while 36% say they are not sure.
“I know we’re not directly responsible,” said Rachel Renfrom, a 35-year-old granddaughter from Tennessee. “But we’re always people involved in situations like this and I don’t understand why we’re not doing it now to a greater extent.”
Renfro wants the US to accept more refugees and provide more aid to Ukraine. Sending troops should be “the absolute last resort,” he said.
Most Americans support the imposition of U.S. sanctions on Russia for aggression, providing weapons to Ukraine, and accepting refugees from Ukraine into the United States. About two-thirds say NATO membership is good for the United States
But public support has stalled over the deployment of U.S. troops in Ukraine to fight Russian forces. Only 22% say they support the deployment of U.S. troops in Ukraine to fight Russian forces, while 55% oppose; 23% say they are not for or against.
Michael Gonzalez, 31, of Fort Collins, Colorado, said Biden’s answer was “almost correct” and led to widespread sanctions against Russian banks, oligarchs and government officials and their families.
“In a perfect world, I want us to get there with the troops,” said Gonzalez, whose father served in the Cuban military and whose father worked as a private contractor during the U.S. -led war in Afghanistan. “I feel, we should not take control of the world and go everywhere. I wanted to help them, but we fought for a while “.
Biden faced other important political challenges during the intervening period, when inflation reached a four -decade high and rising energy prices were exacerbated by the war. The poll shows that the balance between sanctions in the Russian and American economies could change. By a narrow margin, the Americans said the country’s top priority was to impose sanctions on Russia as effectively as possible, limiting the damage to the U.S. economy from 51% to 45%. Others said last month they were prioritizing Russia’s sanctions from 55% to 42% rather than limiting economic damage.
Anthony Cordesman, honorary president of strategy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC, said Americans widely support many of the actions the White House is already taking. Strengthening Ukraine’s air defenses or shipping more tanks and aircraft also requires building logistics, including radar and technical capabilities, that will take longer than many people expect, Cordesman said.
The White House does this for people who want more action, at their own risk.
“If you start pushing the boundaries that we can do in detail, you may or may not be able to calm the Americans, but you’re giving Russia a lot of information that you almost don’t want to pass on,” Cordesman said.
The AP-NORC survey of 1,085 adults was conducted April 14-18 using a NORC probability-based AmeriSpeak panel sample designed to represent the U.S. population. The sampling margin for all respondents was plus-minus 3.9 percentage points.
Source: Huffpost
