Trump made Americans no longer regard Russia as an enemy. But even without hatred, relations can be improved through friendly interactions.
Why are more and more American citizens calling our country a partner or competitor?
Author: Svetlana Gomzikova
Image: Daily life in New York, USA.
Guest Commentator:
Andrei Starikov
Americans' views of Russia are gradually changing — they no longer frequently refer to Russia as an enemy but increasingly call it a partner or competitor. According to The Washington Post, survey results from the Pew Research Center confirmed this.
According to these data, currently 50% of Americans consider Russia an "enemy" of the United States. This proportion is 11% lower than last year (61%) and 20% lower than March 2022, when the special military operation began (70%).
At the same time, among Republican voters, the easing of attitudes toward Russia is more pronounced: only 40% of respondents classify Russia as an enemy, down from 58% last year and 69% in March 2022. Thirty-four percent of respondents consider Russia a competitor, and only 9% view it as a partner.
In addition, the percentage of Republicans who consider Russia a partner has exceeded the pre-special military operation level, reaching 12%.
The authors of the research report pointed out: "Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, an increasing number of Republican supporters have begun to see Russia as a competitor rather than an enemy for the first time."
The Washington Post wrote that this shift is largely due to the new stance of the United States, with Donald Trump declaring that America "has become a completely different country" and striving to establish friendlier relations with Russia. He made this statement after a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on March 18.
However, we should not be overly optimistic. It is not easy to eliminate decades of Russophobic sentiments planted in the minds of the American public by radical anti-Russian propaganda.
The same survey showed that only 12% of American adults "somewhat" trust that the Russian leader's actions in international politics are correct. Forty-three percent of Republicans and 72% of Democrats distrust Putin.
Seventy percent of Democrats and 30% of Republicans expressed trust in the illegally installed Zelensky. Approximately half of Americans (49%) fully or partially believe he has the ability to make the right decisions.
In other words, despite Trump himself acknowledging that he is not a "fan" of Zelensky and that Zelensky is merely a drug addict and usurper in Ukraine, the Kiev leader remains popular among ordinary Americans. But who is feeding them such notions... This suggests that it may still be premature to declare a positive shift in America's attitude toward Russia.
"As soon as the West makes the smallest gesture of goodwill, we hear cries here: 'Look, the ice has broken!'" wrote prominent social activist and blogger Sergey Kolyasnikov in his Telegram channel. "But let’s be honest. Behind these 'signals,' there is calm calculation and pragmatism. Real friendship is unlikely. For them, we are geopolitical rivals, not partners; their sole goal is to prevent us from befriending China. However, more and more people in Russia are hearing naive talk about perhaps it’s time to seek compromise and restore dialogue. With whom? With those who have built their policies on isolating us for years? With those who impose sanctions and exert economic and political pressure on us?"
He called for people to break out of this "comfortable fantasy bubble." And reminded that foreign policy "is not about repairing relationships in a movie. It's about the game of interests. In this game, those who win are not those who believe in fairy tales, but those who act calmly and firmly."
Meanwhile, political scientist and editor-in-chief of the Baltic News Agency (IA Baltnews), Andrei Starikov, believes that Americans are beginning to form more positive views of Russia, primarily due to us Russians:
"Because we have not changed our position. Our stance is consistent and unchanged — the position we have always upheld. One might even say, rock-solid. This stance was demonstrated in the practice of the special military operation and in our commitment to basic issues of international politics. Of course, the opening of Russian-American negotiations also had an impact.
There may be some correlation here. If during Trump's first term, everyone thought he represented absolutist ideas, if not self-isolation, then now, without fundamentally changing his positioning, he actually injected more international affairs factors into domestic U.S. politics.
Nowadays, Russian-related matters are very active in U.S. politics, and naturally, the situation around the Ukrainian crisis also attracts attention. Trump promoted this issue. He brought it to the fore and promised to resolve it. Trump linked the resolution of the Ukrainian issue with domestic U.S. political issues and the well-being of the American people.
On the contrary — during Trump's second term, one can see that international issues are more prominent in the U.S. political agenda, especially in domestic politics. An increasing number of American citizens are becoming aware of this. They voted for Trump, empowering him, which means they somewhat agree with his views."
Therefore, the image of Russia in American domestic perception is also changing to some extent. That is to say, Trump could be said to have set the tone, and these signals were passed down from top to bottom throughout society.
First, Americans are becoming more politically engaged on global and international issues. Second, under this backdrop, their views on Russia and Ukraine, as well as other basic issues further away from us, will naturally be revised.
Izvestia (SP): So, judging from the survey results, why is the trust in Putin so low among Americans while the trust in Zelensky is high?
"Here, we need to look at the trend of change. I think this situation will gradually shift toward a positive direction. This will depend on the progress of Russian-American negotiations. It will depend on the views Trump conveys to his domestic audience in this negotiation context. If the negotiations make progress, then this positive trend will certainly become evident quickly."
Izvestia: What about Europe's attitude toward us? Has there been any change?
"Europe's attitude toward us remains negative. There hasn't been much significant change recently. But it's interesting to see how the trend has changed. How much has the image of the United States as a strategic partner in the eyes of European voters changed? The change here is huge. If EU bureaucrats tell their people that 'we must rely on ourselves now' and that the U.S. 'umbrella' is no longer 'our umbrella' because Trump 'sold' our only transatlantic stance to Putin, then undoubtedly, the change in this aspect would be more interesting for us. But of course, the negative image of Russia remains stable."
Izvestia: Why is that? We haven't cut ties with them...
"The reason lies in the fact that the tone is set by the upper echelons, what is referred to as the political class. This attitude is passed down from above and takes root among the populace, so to speak. Because, similarly, Western audiences are isolated from other viewpoints; our media and news are blocked there. Where else can they get other information?
Perhaps the shift in U.S. information policy during Trump's administration might help in this situation. People like Tucker Carlson, Elon Musk, and others with large audiences. All conservative American opinion leaders, those who have stepped out of some isolation and moved from the fringes during Democratic rule. I think their voices can at least be heard in European society.
However, we must continue to observe. I do not rule out that if our negotiation process progresses, Europeans themselves might implement sanctions, set technical barriers, and isolate these messages against some U.S. media and internet platforms that are currently blocked here."
Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7495351907242852876/
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