The importance of NATO as a security actor has jumped 11 points in one year in the perception of public opinion in 14 European and North American countries, according to an annual study by the German Marshall Fund (GMF ) published this Thursday.
The European Union is also perceived as important for the national security of the countries of the continent, according to this study called “transatlantic trends” and carried out in July in 14 countries (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States) with 1,500 people per country.
78% of people surveyed believe that NATO is “very” or “rather” important for the security of their country, compared to 67% in 2021. Countries close to Russia and Ukraine are those who place a lot of emphasis on it. importance (91% in Poland, 88% in Romania, 87% in Lithuania), but high scores are to be found in Western European countries, such as Portugal (90%), the Netherlands (81%) or Germany (80%).