While confusion continues to reign in Georgia as to Russia’s intentions there and NATO prepares to get into the act, 50% of Americans believe the United Nations should send peacekeepers to the region, but only 22% say U.S. troops should be involved.

Fifty-nine percent (59%) say American troops should not be sent to keep the peace in the troubled area, according to the latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey (Premium Members can review demographic crosstabs and other data).
With eight out of 10 (80%) saying they are following the Georgia story at least somewhat closely, 43% of voters now think the United States should take diplomatic action against Russia, up from 31% early last week.

But, despite the numerous Cold War references that have been made publicly in the past few days, Americans still overwhelmingly do not regard Russia as an enemy. Fifteen percent (15%) say Russia is an enemy of the United States; 5% say it is an ally, and 76% rate the relationship as somewhere in between (Premium Members can review demographic crosstabs and other data).

A plurality of voters (48%) continue to believe that Republican presidential candidate John McCain is better able to deal with Russia, but 40% think Democrat Barack Obama is the more capable. Last week, 51% rated McCain as the best equipped to handle the crisis in Georgia, compared to 36% who believed that of Obama.

Interestingly, while 88% of Republicans now say McCain would handle dealings with Russia better, so do 20% of Democrats. But 65% of Democrats – and 8% of Republicans – believe Obama is the better choice. Unaffiliated voters give McCain the edge 45% to 38%.

In Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll, national security is now the top issue in Election 2008 for 25% of voters, up four points over the last week.

Russia launched a massive military offensive against its southern neighbor on August 7 after Georgian troops attempted to seize control of the province of South Ossetia, which is situated between the two countries. Russia and Georgia have been bickering over ownership of South Ossetia since it broke from the latter in the early 1990s.

The European Union and the United States have both been highly critical of Russia, but their complaints have been largely ignored. Russia now claims to have halted its military advance into Georgia, but the Georgians dispute that. NATO is holding an emergency session tomorrow (Tuesday) to discuss the situation.

Compounding the problem is Poland’s announcement last Thursday that it had agreed to a U.S. request to base a defensive missile “shield” for Europe there. Russia denounced the timing of the announcement and warned its neighbor that the installation of the anti-missile missiles would make it a legitimate military target.

In the new survey, 35% say they are worried that Russia will launch a nuclear attack on Poland, including eight percent who are Very Worried. But nearly half (46%) describe themselves as not very worried about this possibility, while 12% are not worried at all.

Similarly, nearly one-quarter of Americans (24%) have no worries that Russia will attack the United States, while 49% say they are not very worried that this will happen. Twenty-four percent (24%) are concerned about this possibility, however, including five percent who say they are Very Worried. In February, even though then-Russian President Vladimir Putin had just threatened to target Ukraine with nuclear missiles if it joined the anti-missile missile defense system, 76% of voters told Rasmussen Reports they were not worried about Russia attacking America.

A solid majority (66%) now say terrorists are a greater threat to the United States than Russia. Only 13% see Russia as the bigger concern.

While the Bush administration has championed Georgia’s democratic progress and even pushed for the country’s membership in NATO, the United States so far has only condemned Russia publicly and offered humanitarian aid. President Bush is urging Georgia to accept a cease-fire agreement promoted by France that will leave Russian troops in South Ossetia and another disputed province.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has suggested that Russia might be thrown out of the G8 group of industrialized nations and that NATO membership for Georgia and Ukraine might be put on the fast-track.

McCain has been outspoken from the start, repeatedly criticizing Russia for its aggression. Obama has urged restraint on both sides but has toughened his rhetoric over the days of the crisis.

Thirty-eight percent (38%) of voters rate the Bush administration’s handling of the Russia-Georgia situation so far as good or excellent, while 24% rate it as poor.

Republicans are definitely more bullish in their attitudes toward Russia and the Georgia situation than Democrats. Fifty-five percent (55%) of GOP voters, for example, believe the United States should take diplomatic action against Russia versus 35% of Democrats. Nearly a third of Republicans (31%) believe U.S. troops should be part of a multi-national effort to bring peace to the region, although 46% disagree. By comparison, only 17% of Democrats say U.S. troops should be involved, while 65% are opposed.

This month, voters trust Democrats more than Republicans on nine out of 10 issues, including national security, the issue on which the GOP usually shows the greatest strength.

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See survey questions and toplines. Crosstabs for set I of Russia-Georgia Conflict and set II of Russia-Georgia conflict available for Premium Members only.