Majority of Americans believe Putin stalling peace talks, back sanctions if Russia refuses to negotiate, poll shows

Over 60% of Americans believe Russian President Vladimir Putin is "stalling" peace talks involving the United States, and back additional sanctions and weaponry shipments if Russia refuses to negotiate a peace deal in Ukraine, according to a Harvard CAPS Harris poll released on May 19.

Two-thirds of poll respondents said that they believe Putin is "playing games and stalling" in peace deal negotiations involving the United States, with only 34% of respondents believing Putin "genuinely wants to end the war." In contrast, 62% of respondents believed President Volodymyr Zelensky wanted to end the war.

A further 62% of respondents also indicated that that the "Trump administration (should) continue to provide weaponry to Ukraine and impose further economic sanctions on Russia if it refuses to negotiate" a peace deal, with 38% of respondents against additional weaponry and sanctions.

The survey, which was fielded May 14-15, pre-dates U.S. President Donald Trump's phone call with Putin on May 19.

Following Trump's two-hour phone call with the Russian president, Putin once again did not agree to a ceasefire, instead offering to negotiate a "memorandum regarding a potential future peace treaty" with Ukraine.

Trump told reporters in the Oval Office following the phone call that he will not impose further sanctions against Russia "because there's a chance" of progress towards a ceasefire

"Because I think there's a chance of getting something done, and if you do that, you could also make it much worse," Trump said.

In separate comments to reporters following the phone call, Trump responded that he trusts Putin and believes he wants peace.

Despite Trump's efforts to broker a peace deal, 59% of respondents indicated that they believe Trump is "not tough enough" when dealing with Putin, while 31% believed Trump's demeanor with Putin to be "about right." A further 10% of respondents said Trump was "too tough" with Putin.

Respondents were also relatively split as to whether they believe Trump will successfully negotiate the end of the war, with 58% of respondents saying that Trump will "not solve" the war, while 42% of respondents believe Trump will help end the war.

Initially elected on the campaign promise to end the war within "24 hours," Trump has reportedly grown increasingly frustrated at the pace of negotiations. On May 19, Trump reiterated he would abandon efforts to end Russia's war against Ukraine if progress is not made.

"I tell you, big egos involved, but I think something's going to happen. And if it doesn't, I just back away, and they're going to have to keep going," Trump said.

The poll was conducted conducted online within the United States, surveying 1,903 registered voters. The poll is deemed accurate +/- 2.2 percentage point, 19 times out of 20.

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