Almost 56% of Lithuanian respondents said they were opposed to any kind of military deployment to Ukraine, according to a Vilmorus poll released by the Baltic News Service (BNS) on April 2.
There has been widespread debate about the prospect of sending Western troops to Ukraine since French President Emmanuel Macron said in February that the notion should not be taken off the table. While some countries, such as Finland, similarly said that it should not be ruled out, it has found little support elsewhere in the West.
According to the poll, only 15% of respondents were in favor of sending troops to Ukraine, but on the condition that other Western allies do so as well. Another 15% approved of sending troops to do training exercises with the Ukrainian military.
Only 3.5% approved of the Lithuanian military actively participating in combat.
Lithuania, along with its Baltic neighbors Latvia and Estonia, rank among the top supporters of Ukraine as a percentage of GDP.
Lithuania has also required all Russian-registered vehicles to leave the country or re-register in Lithuania, among other measures to isolate Russia.
A poll conducted in January 2023 found that 90% of Lithuanians had an unfavorable opinion of Russia.
Lithuania has a small Russian minority, around 5% of the population, but the country has also seen an influx of Russians and Belarusians since the beginning of the full-scale war, prompting some signs of discontent among the local population.
Chris York
(Updated: )
