Americans may harbor low opinions concerning the utility of post 9/11 wars. However, they are keen on the United States being committed to play a considerable leadership role when it comes to the world stage. These findings have been published in the report titled “Foreign Policy in the Age of Retrenchment”.

Three respondents out of five in a nationally held survey done for Chicago Council on Global Affairs believe that America must assume a pro-active role in international affairs.

Role of American troops

About 71 percent of respondents were in favor of using American troops to help in times of humanitarian crisis and also to prevent any kind of government-backed genocide, as per the research. Approximately 69 percent favored the deployment of American troops to bar Iran from getting its hands on nuclear weapons. Fifty four percent favored the use of military action to make sure that oil supplies continue as before.

Dina Smeltz, the senior fellow of the council said that the latest survey of the organization goes head to head with the notion that the people of the US are becoming increasingly isolationist to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. The study showed that American public opinion concerning intervention in foreign countries has been consistent since the end of World War II.

Security challenges

A survey held across the United States among 2,108 adults revealed that its citizens remain committed to its global leadership role to solve security challenges anywhere in the world. Respondents also favored the enhancement of economic prosperity. The survey was held by GfK Custom Research and had an error margin of 2.5 percentage points. GfK Custom is headquartered in Palo Alto, California.

Smeltz, however, added a caveat: the survey was done between May 6 to May 29 – before ISIS beheaded humanitarian aid workers and western journalists. The militant group has now control over vast areas of Syria and Iraq.

According to Senator John McCain, the beheadings have hardened the opinion of Americans. He said that the executions brought home the importance of the presence of American forces. He was speaking at roundtable discussion when he was the guest at Arizona State University. The killings have broken the barriers among the Democratic and Republican who are in support of isolation and intervention. The public clearly prefers their country to be a leader in the world stage.