A recent Harvard CAPS Harris poll, released on 19 May, revealed that most Americans think Russian President Vladimir Putin is stalligng peace negotiations in peace negotiations.
“Two-thirds of poll respondents said that they believe Putin is playing games and stalling in peace deal negotiations involving the United States,” the survey showed. About 34% believe Putin “genuinely wants to end the war.”
This survey released after the failed attempt at a Zelenskyy-Putin meeting in Istanbul, Türkiye, last week. Instead, Russian and Ukrainian delegations met, but after nearly two hours of discussions, the negotiations ended with only limited results: both sides agreed to a large-scale prisoner exchange involving 1,000 prisoners each without signing any ceasefire agreement. Instead, Russia demanded Ukraine withdraw from occupied oblasts—a demand Ukraine rejected This meeting marked the first direct diplomatic talks between the two countries in over three years.
The recent poll also showed a stark contrast in how Americans view the two leaders. A majority of Americans (62%) believe Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wants to end the war.
The survey found strong support for continued military assistance to Ukraine. According to the poll, 62% of respondents support the Trump administration providing weaponry to Ukraine and imposing additional economic sanctions if Russia refuses to negotiate.
The Harvard CAPS Harris poll was conducted 14-15 May. It surveyed 1,903 registered voters online within the United States. The results came before President Trump’s two-hour phone call with Putin on 19 May.
That call also did not produce a ceasefire agreement. Putin instead offered to negotiate a “memorandum regarding a potential future peace treaty” with Ukraine.
Trump told reporters after the call he would not impose further sanctions against Russia.
“Because I think there’s a chance of getting something done, and if you do that, you could also make it much worse. But there could be a time where that’s going to happen,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
The president also expressed trust in Putin. He told reporters he believes the Russian leader wants peace.
The poll indicated Americans are not convinced by Trump’s approach. A majority (59%) believe Trump is “not tough enough” when dealing with Putin. Only 31% think his demeanor with Putin is “about right,” while 10% consider him “too tough.”
Americans also doubt Trump’s ability to end the war. The poll shows 58% believe Trump will “not solve” the war. Only 42% think he will help end it.
During the presidential campaign, Trump made a promise to end the war within ’24 hours.’ Months after inauguration and efforts to sign a peace deal, Trump has reportedly grown frustrated with the slow pace of negotiations.
“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 on 19 May.
The Harvard CAPS Harris poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.2 percentage points.
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