Russophobia in US nears Cold War levels, 80% see Russia as enemy: Poll

Americans are showing some of the highest levels of hostility toward the Russian Federation in 40 years, with Russophobia reaching Cold War levels.

The poll done for ABC News and the Washington Post found that 80% of Americans see Russia as unfriendly or an enemy of the United States.
That’s the worst since 1983, when Russia was part of the Soviet Union - although Americans used to refer to the whole region as Russia. That was also the height of Cold War, when nuclear tensions between Russia and the West were at their peak.

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Now, just 12% of Americans see Russia as a friend of the US, found the new poll, which was conducted between Sunday and Thursday when Russia began its military operations targeting Ukraine.

That number was at its highest in 1993, two years after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, when two-thirds of Americans saw Russia as friendly toward the US.

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Respondents were generally negative on Russia in spite of party affiliations. But it was slightly less for Republicans at 78% compared to 86% for Democrats, and 81% for independents.

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While 62% of Republicans said they supported anti-Russia sanction, 79% of Democrats and 63% of independents backed the measures.