A new Economist/YouGov survey conducted between February 5-8 on 1,500 U.S. adults shows that a majority do not want American troops engaging in direct combat with Russians.
The survey asked: “Do you think each of the following courses of action would be a good idea or a bad idea?”
The following “courses of action” were provided for respondents to rate:
Imposing economic sanctions on Russia: Good idea (50%), Bad idea (20%), Not sure (31%).
Allowing Ukraine to joint NATO: Good idea (43%), Bad idea (15%), Not sure (42%).
Sending financial aid to Ukraine: Good idea (42%), Bad idea (24%), Not sure (34%).
Sending troops to NATO ally countries in eastern Europe: Good idea (40%), Bad idea (23%), Not sure (37%).
Sending weapons to Ukraine: Good idea (38%), Bad idea (31%), Not sure (31%).
Sending soldiers to Ukraine to provide help, but not to fight Russian soldiers: Good idea (33%), Bad idea (34%), Not sure (33%).
The final course of action was “sending soldiers to Ukraine to fight Russian soldiers.” This drew a strong negative with 55% saying it was a bad idea, and only 13% saying it was a good idea. 33% were not sure.
Although Economist/YouGov notes that some Americans don’t have much knowledge about Ukraine, they do view Russia as a danger to the United States: “Americans don’t just see Russia as a threat to Ukraine. They also view it as a threat to the U.S. More than two-thirds call it a threat, and one-third say Russia is a direct and immediate threat.”
On Friday, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan responded to a reporter who asked about the Russia threat and the NATO Response Force of Americans.
“But I want to be very clear about something: These deployments of U.S. service members to Poland, to Romania, to Germany — these are not soldiers who are being sent to go fight Russia in Ukraine,” Sullivan said. “They are not going to war in Ukraine. They are not going to war with Russia. They’re going to defend NATO territory, consistent with our Article 5 obligation. They are defensive deployments. They are non-escalatory. They are meant to reinforce, reassure, and deter aggression against NATO territory.”
As The Daily Wire reported on Saturday, “the Pentagon pulled all U.S. military personnel out of Ukraine” as an imminent invasion by Russian forces appears increasingly likely.
Also on Saturday, the State Department issued a Level 4 travel advisory, stating that as a result of escalating threats from Russia, as well as COVID-19, anyone in Ukraine should leave immediately. Additionally, though a small contingent of consular staff will be present in Lviv, Ukraine, which is approximately 291 miles west of Kyiv, for emergency purposes, “the U.S. government will not be able to evacuate U.S. citizens in the event of Russian military action anywhere in Ukraine.”
As of Sunday, consular activities in Kyiv will be suspended, and the State Department has ordered “most U.S. direct hire employees” to leave the embassy there.
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