Most of the British public believe any peace deal will favour Russia at Ukraine’s expense.
While President Donald Trump has decided to upend U.S. foreign policy and cosy up to Russian President Vladimir Putin, turning his back on Ukraine, an opinion poll has found that most Britons remain resolute in their support for the country.
They also feel a sense of betrayal and anxiety about President Trump’s decision to unilaterally begin negotiations with Putin, with Trump happy to give into Putin’s demands about being allowed to keep Ukrainian territory and block Ukraine’s membership of NATO.
The polling was carried out by campaign group More in Common, who found that when they asked the public how they felt about Trump’s negotiations with Putin, the top word was “worried”, with Britons also feeling “scared” and “concerned.”
More in Common also found that ‘many also feel indignant about the negotiations, opting for words like “angry”, “disgusted” and “annoyed”.
The poll also discovered that most of the British public believe any peace deal will favour Russia at Ukraine’s expense.
A majority (52 per cent) believe Russia will secure a good outcome, while only 18 per cent think it will get a bad deal. By 46 to 23 per cent, Britons expect the US to benefit.
Ukraine is expected to fare the worst from the current negotiations. Around 62 per cent predict a bad outcome for the country, while only 13 per cent expect President Trump’s negotiations to lead to a good outcome for the invaded country.
Last week, Trump falsely accused Ukrainian President Zelensky of being a dictator. Among British voters however, support for Zelensky seems to hold strong across politics, with voters of every party more likely to approve than disapprove of the Ukrainian President.
More in Common found: “The words used to describe Zelensky contrast starkly with those used to describe Vladimir Putin: Britons consider the Ukrainian President to be “brave”, a “leader”, “determined” and “strong”. In contrast, Putin is described as an “evil” “dictator” and a “tyrant”.
Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward
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