Amid the ongoing crisis in Ukraine, the results of a CNN/ORC International survey released Monday showed that a majority of Americans support imposing economic sanctions against Russia for its role in the conflict.
The poll found that 59 percent of Americans support the use of sanctions against Russia in an attempt to persuade the country to remove its forces from the Crimean peninsula.
The U.S. claims that Russian troops have taken over Ukrainian military installations across the Crimea region, although Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied the accusations.
Putin has described the armed men as "local self-defense forces" and claimed the Russian military is only interested in protecting the ethnic Russians in the region.
"All demographic groups support economic sanctions except the youngest Americans," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "More than six in 10 older Americans support sanctions, but 55% of Americans under the age of 35 oppose them."
He added, "It's possible that generation gap is due to older Americans' memories of the Soviet Union as the chief threat to the U.S.; many younger Americans may have no memory at all of the Cold War and most of those under the age of 25 were not even born when the Soviet Union collapsed."
CNN noted that imposing sanctions against Russia appears to be the only option that a majority of Americans support.
Forty-six percent support providing economic aid to Ukraine, while 40 percent are in favor of canceling the upcoming G8 summit. Just 12 percent support sending U.S. ground troops to Ukraine.
The poll also showed that 48 percent of Americans approve of how President Barack Obama has handled the Ukraine crisis, while his overall job approval rating is at 43 percent.
Last week, Obama authorized the U.S. to impose travel restrictions and economic sanctions on individuals determined to be involved in Russian military intervention in the Crimea region, but the administration has thus far not publicly identified any targets.
Obama signed an Executive Order that authorizes sanctions on individuals and entities asserting authority over any part of Ukraine without authorization as well as those responsible for activities undermining democratic processes and institutions in Ukraine.
The White House said the order will allow the U.S. to sanction those who are determined to be most directly involved in destabilizing Ukraine, including the military intervention in Crimea.
The CNN/ORC survey of 801 adults was conducted March 7th through 9th and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
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