Americans doubt US-Iran deal will lead to lasting peace, poll shows – USA Today
A majority of Americans think it’s unlikely that the preliminary agreement between the U.S. and Iran will lead to lasting peace between the two countries, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll.
About 63% of Americans don’t believe that the deal President Donald Trump signed will bring peace, the June 23 poll of 1,268 Americans found. About half of Republicans and eight in 10 Democrats polled between June 18-22 said the deal was unlikely to deliver peace.
The poll found that just 18% of Americans – including 10% of Democrats and 34% of Republicans – view lasting peace as likely.
The latest Reuters/Ipsos poll comes as the war in Iran continues weighing heavily on Trump’s popularity. His approval rating has dipped to 34%, similar to April’s rating, which was the lowest level of the president’s second term. The 2 percentage-point decline from Trump’s 36% approval earlier this month is within the poll’s 3-point margin of error.
Trump began his second term with a 47% approval rating in the outlets’ polling.
One in four Americans polled believe Trump’s war with Iran was worth the expense, and 52% polled say it has not been worth the costs for the U.S. to take military action in Iran, similar to a May Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted before the countries’ signed agreement.
Moody’s Analytics Chief Economist Mark Zandi told USA TODAY earlier this month he estimates that the war has cost U.S. consumers and taxpayers more than $100 billion so far, and counting. Zandi factors in military spending, rising energy and commodity prices, as well as interest rates. Arguably the most visible cost for Americans comes at the gas pumps, as prices peaked at an average of $4.56 per gallon before dropping once it appeared the two sides might reach an agreement.
Only 23% of Americans – including half of Republicans – think the U.S. is now in a stronger position with Iran compared with its position before the war, the Reuters/Ipsos poll found. About 35% of those polled believe the U.S. is in a weaker position. Others polled said they were not sure or that the U.S. position was about the same as before.
Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a preliminary deal on June 17 with provisions that would reopen oil and gas shipping lanes frozen by the war, including the Strait of Hormuz.
The agreement eased U.S.-led economic pressure on Iran and called for an immediate end to warfare on all fronts, including Lebanon. The deal set out expectations for the next phase of negotiations, which will confront more complex topics, including the fate of Iran’s nuclear program.
The agreement has led to volatility in global crude oil prices, and gas prices remain higher than before the U.S.-Israeli strikes that started the war Feb. 28.
