More Americans believe U.S. as top military power: poll

Fifty-nine percent of Americans now believe that the United States is the No. 1 military power in the world, up six percentage points from last year, found a Gallup released Friday.

Fewer Americans (38 percent) now say the U.S. is only one of several leading military powers, down from 44 percent a year ago, according to the poll conducted on Feb. 8-11.

Older Americans are less likely than younger counterparts to say U.S. is No. 1 militarily, the poll showed. A slim majority of U.S. adults aged 50 and older (54 percent) say the U.S. is top military power, well below the 64 percent of Americans younger than 50 who say the same.

"Older adults are more likely to have clearer memories of the Cold War and the military prestige the U.S. enjoyed after the fall of the Soviet Union. As such, these older Americans may be more likely to feel that U.S. military power is not as strong now as it was then," Gallup said in a report on the poll.

At the same time, a strong majority of Americans say it is important for U.S. to be the top military power in the world. About two-thirds of U.S. adults (68 percent) hold this opinion, up six percentage points from two years ago.

Overall, Americans have consistently said it is important for the U.S. military to be No. 1 in the world over the past two decades, emphasizing the importance most Americans place on their country's military preponderance.

Gallup said that more Americans now believe their military is superior largely because the American military takes a more active role on the world stage relative to the past few years, including bombing the Islamic State militants in the Middle East.

"Even after two unpopular military engagements in Iraq and Afghanistan, most Americans continue to see the military power of the U.S. as an important component of the country's global standing," Gallup said. Endite