US, Europe Residents Support Russian Counter-Terrorism Campaign in Syria

The number of US, UK and German citizens who back Russia’s military action in Syria is bigger than those who oppose the campaign, a new survey conducted by Populus exclusively for Sputnik revealed Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The poll, conducted between December 2 and 8, found that 51 percent of those polled in Germany, 42 percent in Britain and 35 percent in the United States were in favor of Russia’s aerial campaign, while 27, 31 and 30 percent respectively opposed it. The rest remained undecided.

The same poll showed that 64 percent of Turks were against Russia’s involvement in Syria, with only 17 percent supporting Russia's airstrikes against Daesh positions.

Meanwhile, 26 percent of respondents in the United States said they were not aware of Russia’s operation in Syria, while 90 percent of respondents in the United Kingdom and 87 percent in both Germany and Turkey said they knew about the campaign, the poll showed.

An earlier poll, conducted by the French Institute of Public Opinion (IFOP) for Sputnik in early December, found that the vast majority of the France population, some 80 percent, approved of Russia’s air campaign targeting the Islamic State (IS, or Daesh).

Russia has been conducting airstrikes against the Daesh militant group in Syria since September 30. The militant group is outlawed in the United States, EU member states and Russia.

The international public opinion project Sputnik.Polls came into being in January 2015, in partnership with Populus, a founding member of the British Polling Council. The project involves regular surveys in the United States and Europe on high-profile social and political issues.