Poll reveals Republican attitudes to Ukraine ceding territory

More than 40% of GOP supporters want a swift end to the conflict, even if that means conceding land to Russia

Four out of 10 Republicans would like Washington to do whatever it can to resolve the conflict in Ukraine quickly, even if that entails making concessions to Russia, according to a poll released on Monday.

In a survey conducted by Gallup, respondents were asked what they would “prefer the US to do in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.” Overall, 31% of respondents said they want Washington “to end the conflict quickly, even if Russia keeps territory.” Meanwhile, 65% believe that the US should “support Ukraine reclaiming territory,” even if it prolongs the hostilities. The results are almost identical to those from a similar poll conducted in August 2022.

The territories in question are the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, as well as Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions, which overwhelmingly voted to join Russia in autumn 2022. Ukraine still claims the areas as its own, as it does with Crimea, which chose to rejoin Russia in 2014 following the Western-backed coup in Kiev.

According to the Gallop poll, 41% of Republicans want the conflict to end quickly, even if it “allows Russia to keep territory.” In contrast, 53% said they support Kiev’s push to capture its former regions, while acknowledging that the policy could prolong hostilities. The latter option was backed by 81% of Democrats polled.

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Republicans are also more inclined to believe that the US is doing too much to help Ukraine, with 47% expressing that belief, as opposed to just 10% of Democrats.

Overall, 28% of Americans believe that the US is providing Kiev with too much assistance, while 30% think that Washington isn’t doing enough. The number of people who are satisfied with the current level of US aid to Ukraine stood at 39% of those polled.

The Gallup survey was released after Swiss news outlet Neue Zürcher Zeitung claimed last week, citing sources, that CIA Director William Burns had offered Russia a “land for peace” deal in which Moscow would keep “20% of Ukrainian territory.” The White House, the CIA, and the Kremlin all denied that such a proposal had been made.

Moscow has repeatedly insisted that it is open to peace talks with Kiev, but only if it “recognizes the reality on the ground,” including the new status of its four former territories as part of Russia.