According to a study carried out by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), the first continental ‘think tank’ in this field of strategic analysis, Europeans massively believe that Russia is “responsible” for the war; but they have very different and conflicting views on the future of the “crisis.”
According to the ECFR study, Europe has been divided into two large camps: supporters of “justice”, supporters of a “hard” line against Moscow; and the supporters of a “negotiated peace”, defenders of a more “accommodating” line.
Italy, Germany, Romania and France are the leaders of the “negotiated peace”, supported by 52, 49, 42 and 41% of the Italians, Germans, Romanians and French.
Poland, UK, Finland and Portugal are the leaders of “justice” and a “hard” line, supported by 41, 21, 25 and 21% of Poles, English, Finns and Portuguese.
According to the ECFR study, Spain and the Spanish are in an intermediate position, quite divided. 35% of Spaniards would be in favor of a “negotiated peace”. 15% would support a “hard” line. And 30% of the undecided do not seem to be clear about what position to take, in the face of a bloody tragedy that can go on indefinitely.
In the opinion of the ECFR, this division of the European peoples runs the risk of worsening, reaching this conclusion: «European governments need to find a new language that allows to bridge these substantive differences between two camps, which perceive the war in a very different way. . You should try to avoid polarization, if you want to reinforce a threatened European unity».
According to the ECFR, this risk of division can also grow in the face of the new threats arising from the war: the significant increase in energy prices and the cost of living, fear, the increase in unemployment and precariousness, uncertainty Given the increase in the number of refugees, the risks of Russian nuclear threats
