WASHINGTON, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Seven in ten Americans said migrants should be given the opportunity to enter the United States, according to a Monmouth University poll released on Monday.

Of those surveyed, 29 percent said they see the migrant caravan, a group of thousands of Central Americans fleeing poverty and violence in their home countries, as a major threat to the United States, the poll showed.

Meanwhile, 24 percent said they see the caravan as a minor threat and 39 percent say it is no real threat to the United States.

A majority of Republicans, 54 percent, said they see the caravan as a major threat, while just 11 percent of Democrats and 28 percent of independents said the same.

The poll found that the U.S. states who share a border with Mexico are less likely to consider the caravan a "threat," with around 21 percent reporting fears over its arrival. Residents of the Midwest, Southeast and mountain-northwest are more likely to view the caravan as a "major" threat.

The migrants have traveled more than 1,000 km in Mexico alone, mostly on foot, though sometimes they hitch rides on cargo trucks or rail cars.

U.S. President Donald Trump has deployed approximately 5,800 military personnel at the border to deter attempted entry by undocumented migrants, according to a The Hill news report.