More than half of Americans, including one in four Republicans, are concerned that President Donald Trump is “too closely aligned” with Russia and its leader, Vladimir Putin. This concern comes as Trump continues to shift U.S. foreign policy in ways that some believe favor Russian interests, a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found.
The two-day survey, which was completed on Wednesday, also found that most Americans are not on board with Trump’s plans for expanding U.S. territory, including ideas about acquiring Greenland, Canada, and the Panama Canal.
According to the poll, 56% of respondents, including 89% of Democrats and 27% of Republicans, believe Trump is too close to Moscow. In contrast, 40% of respondents disagreed, and 4% did not answer the question.
Since starting his second term in January, Trump has made significant changes to American foreign policy. This includes publicly criticizing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for not being committed to peace with Russia, a move that has left U.S. allies concerned. Some European leaders are now questioning whether they can rely on the United States for support in defending themselves.
Trump has argued that his approach is necessary to end the war in Ukraine, something he promised to do on his first day in office. The poll also showed that many Americans support his plan to tie U.S. military support for Ukraine to a deal that gives the U.S. a share of Ukraine’s mineral resources. About 44% of respondents agreed with this idea, including two-thirds of Republicans and one in five Democrats.
However, the poll revealed little support for Trump’s goals of expanding U.S. territory. When asked which issues Trump should prioritize, only 1% of respondents chose expanding U.S. territory. In comparison, 61% said Trump should focus on fighting inflation, and 13% said he should work on reducing the size of the federal government.
Regarding specific expansion ideas, only 17% of respondents, including 26% of Republicans, supported Trump’s plan to make Canada the 51st state. Similarly, 21% of respondents, including 34% of Republicans, supported the idea of taking control of Gaza to help bring peace to the Middle East.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll, which surveyed 1,422 U.S. adults, has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
