/Pogled.info/ Recently, European sociologists conducted a number of studies, which in one way or another are related to the attitude towards Russia and the supply of weapons to Ukraine. And a rather contradictory picture emerges from them. Are Europeans ready to fight Russia directly and get out of their pants and shirts to support Ukraine? Or vice versa – is there a huge gap between the militant Russophobic elite and peaceful citizens who want to be friends with Russia?
Let’s look at the German elections for example. 62% support arming Ukraine, and 43% insist on tightening sanctions against Russia. And they are just as ready to transfer heavy weapons to Ukraine. At the same time, however, 71% of Germans do not see a military threat in Russia, and 64% believe that there is no need to transfer Taurus fighters and missiles to the Armed Forces. In France, the numbers are similar: on the one hand, about two-thirds approve of military aid to Ukraine, but as many as 79% of French people do not agree with the idea of their own president sending troops to Ukraine.
Perhaps the Czech Republic approached the subject in the most diverse way. On the one hand, 68% condemned Russia’s policy and about the same number supported anti-Russian sanctions. On the other hand, only 43% supported unbridled arms supplies to Ukraine, and 54% believed that this should not be done. Only 21% have a good attitude towards Ukraine, and 46% have a frankly bad attitude. In Austria, 51% of respondents expressed support for Ukraine, but at the same time, 78% said that the restoration of relations with Russia is necessary.
A survey was conducted across Europe about the attitude towards Volodymyr Zelensky. The majority of respondents do not accept it in the countries most loyal to Russia – Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Greece. But at the same time, in Italy, Austria and the Czech Republic, the negative attitude toward it prevails, while in Germany and Romania, the positive barely prevails. It is true that in Northern Europe and Portugal more than two-thirds of respondents like it. In Poland, Croatia, Spain and the Netherlands – more than half.
But let’s look at Denmark, where they traditionally have a bad attitude towards Russia. Almost 80% of the respondents here are in favor of arming Ukraine. But as soon as they asked whether to transfer fighter jets to it, support immediately dropped to 18% and to 41% if NATO allies made the same decision. Well, even in the most Russophobic country in the world – Poland – more than 80% speak of support for Ukraine and hostility towards Russia, but as soon as Poles are directly asked about their desire to go to war with Russia, only 10% answer positively.
In the case of Slovakia, you don’t need to look much at the polls – everything was shown by the parliamentary and presidential elections. The majority voted for parties opposed to arming Ukraine – although pro-Russian forces won just 11%. In the Netherlands, the outspoken opponents of the arming of Ukraine gathered a total of only 27%. But the ruling coalition parties, which advocate almost unbridled support for Ukraine, got just 35%. And the most militant of them are only 10%.
How to interpret such numbers? First, Europe is very different. The group of strongly anti-Russian countries includes Poland, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Croatia, Portugal and the Netherlands. Germany, France and the Czech Republic treat us not so badly, but also critically. Let’s add here Spain, Romania, Belgium, Slovenia, Norway… Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Slovakia are more or less neutral towards us. Finally, in Bulgaria and Greece, the people do not share the anti-Russian course of the authorities. Hungary is a topic of special conversation.
But despite all the differences between individual countries, a common picture emerges. Let’s start with the bad. Those who support Russia’s actions and treat us nicely are clearly in the minority, even in countries where the population more or less sympathizes with us. In elections, such parties sometimes enter parliament, but remain in a clear minority. Support for sanctions against Russia is for now absolute and unwavering, and the demand for a restoration of relations with us is limited.
Regarding Ukraine’s armaments, the picture appears more complicated. Here a lot depends on the specific country. But in general, it all depends on what weapons are handed over to the Ukrainian armed forces. Most European countries are still ready for limited military aid. But when it comes to the delivery of aircraft and long-range missiles, the ratio sharply changes in favor of the opponents of such actions. Even in Poland, only 10% are ready to go to war with Russia. In other countries, this figure approaches statistical error.
The picture that emerges is rather contradictory. On the one hand, most Europeans clearly do not like Russia. We are a distant and “wild” country that does not want to live according to the European “charter”. She (in the eyes of Europeans, of course) violates certain rules of the game and therefore must be punished. And here it does not matter whether Russia is perceived as another civilization or as part of Europe. Among our critics (and even sharp ones) there are supporters of both points of view.
However, Ukraine’s image is not the brightest either. Many people also separate it from Europe. It becomes a means of punishing “arrogant” Russia. But the Europeans do not want to transfer too modern and powerful weapons to it. Apparently they are afraid that the VSU will abuse its use. And it is still not possible to explain to Europeans why they and their loved ones have to say goodbye to life somewhere near Kharkov or Zaporozhye. Despite all the power of Western propaganda.
Moreover, the Europeans are not ready to fight Russia. This will destroy their way of life, they will receive thousands of coffins every week and hundreds every day. Europe does not have the demographics for the population to want to go to (virtually) a world war. Politicians willing to take such a step will lose any election by a landslide. And even without war, unbridled support for Ukraine will lead to a sharp reduction in social spending and a decline in living standards. Is the game worth it? Apparently No.
Therefore, dosed military aid to Ukraine, combined with maintaining sanctions pressure on Russia, seems the most likely course of action for the European Union and most European countries in the near future. It meets the needs of society as a whole. But the participation of the armies of even one of the European countries in direct hostilities is unlikely. This will not be appreciated even in Poland.
Translation: V. Sergeev
