Poll: Americans 'Not Willing' to Risk American Lives in Ukraine

Hannah BleauMarch 28, 2022

Most Americans are “not willing” to risk American lives to carry out a peacekeeping mission or enforce a ‘no-fly’ zone in Ukraine, a Convention of States Action/Trafalgar Group survey released Monday found.

The survey asked, “How willing are you to risk the lives of America’s young people to enforce a ‘nofly zone’ or peacekeeping mission in Ukraine?”

Overall, 66.3 percent indicated that they are not very willing to support that. Of those, 32.4 percent said they are “not willing at all,” and 33.9 percent said they are “not very willing.”

Another 26.3 percent said they are “somewhat” willing, but just 7.5 percent said they are “very willing.”

A majority in all groups — Republicans, Democrats, and independents — tend to agree that they are not willing to risk American lives over this dispute. Just over 40 percent of Democrats said they are “not very willing” to risk American lives over enforcing a no-fly zone, and 23.6 percent said they are “not willing at all.” A majority of Republicans and independents said they are either “not very willing” or “not willing at all” as well.

The survey, taken March 18-21, 2022, among 1,075 likely general election voters, has a +/- 2.99 percent margin of error.

The survey comes one month after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that he “needs the West to impose a no-fly zone,” which could easily escalate the war. At the time, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said it was “not something the president wants to do”:

“We are not going to have a military war with Russia with U.S. troops,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki says. pic.twitter.com/7oZlvPGv7w

— MSNBC (@MSNBC) February 28, 2022

President Biden awkwardly stumbled during a speech to American troops in Poland on Friday, previewing what they would see in Ukraine.

“You’re going to see, when you’re there, and some of you have been there, you’re going to see women, young people, standing in front of a damn tank just saying, ‘I’m not leaving, I’m holding my ground,’” Biden said. “They’re incredible.”