45% of Britons think Russia plans to attack further European countries

Matthew SmithHead of Data Journalism
February 25, 2022, 4:35 PM GMT+0

Half of Britons think a wider war involving the UK is likely as a result of the invasion of Ukraine

While Ukraine is currently the subject of Russia’s focus, it is far from the only country feeling threatened by Vladimir Putin. The Baltic states of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia in particular have long harboured concerns that Russia wants to take them over.

Now a new YouGov survey shows that Britons tend to think countries worried about Russia are right to be concerned.

Asked what they think Russia’s intentions are, the most common answer – given by 45% of Britons – is that Russia wants to occupy the entirety of Ukraine with a view to attacking further European countries afterwards. This figure includes 53% of Conservative voters and 45% of Labour voters.

One in five (22%) think it is Russia’s intention to occupy all of Ukraine, but go no further, while 10% expect them to only occupy part of Ukraine. Another one in five Britons (20%) aren’t sure.

There are clear concerns that the invasion of Ukraine could be a harbinger of further conflict to come. Half of Britons (52%) say they think it is likely that the attack with lead to a wider war involving the UK, including 13% who think it is “very likely”. Only 26% think such an outcome is unlikely, including just 4% who believe it is “not at all likely”.

Given this, it is perhaps unsurprising that most Britons think the invasion will have a great deal (11%) or fair amount (44%) of impact on their own life.

See the full results here

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