ECFR/Gallup Global Poll: the world is increasingly hostile to military power

October 44, 2007

ECFR/Gallup Global Poll: the world is increasingly hostile to military power

In the run-up to the Iraq war, Mary Robinson called global public opinion the "second superpower". She may have been exaggerating its impact on the Gulf, but she was right to point to the legitimacy of power as an increasingly important factor in world politics.

Even in the many places where citizens cannot vote in free and fair elections, governments are constantly "polling' the public to understand their aspirations and pre-empt them. Who will gain and who will lose from the emergence of a global public opinion? Which of the current great powers will succeed in capturing publics' imagination?

Global poll shows most people want US out of Iraq

September 7, 2007
Global poll shows most people want US out of Iraq

Most people across the world think American troops should withdraw from Iraq within a year, according to a BBC poll published today.

The BBC World Service survey, released just before Congress receives a landmark report on George Bush's "surge", underlined the unpopularity of the president's Iraq policy.

In the poll, 39% of people in 22 countries said troops should leave now, and 28% backed a gradual withdrawal. Only 23% wanted them to stay until Iraq is safe.

Anti-American Sentiment Grows Worldwide

August 24, 2007
Anti-American Sentiment Grows Worldwide

In a March 2007 survey of 28,000 people in 27 countries conducted for the BBC World Service by GlobeScan and the University of Maryland's Program on International Policy Attitudes, only Israel, Iran and North Korea were perceived as having a more negative influence than the United States on world affairs. During 2002-06, European views of the desirability of U.S. leadership in world affairs has declined from 64% to 37%, while its undesirability has risen from 31% to 57%. Former U.S. National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski gives Bush an "F" for his "catastrophic leadership" in world affairs in his new book, Second Chance.

Particularly dramatic are E.U. and world perceptions of Bush. Confidence in the U.S. president has declined in all countries, mirroring similar declines in the United States itself.

The U.S. Council on Foreign Relations' Task Force on Public Diplomacy has pointed to a perceived lack of U.S. empathy for other people's pain and hardship (for example, U.S. reluctance to intervene in Liberia's civil war), arrogance and self-indulgence. The E.U. is the world's largest bilateral aid donor, providing twice as much aid to poor countries as the United States.

Global Unease With Major World Powers

June 25, 2007
Global Unease With Major World Powers

Anti-Americanism is extensive, as it has been for the past five
years. At the same time, the image of China has slipped significantly among the publics of other
major nations. Opinion about Russia is mixed, but confidence in its president, Vladimir Putin, has
declined sharply. In fact, the Russian leader's negatives have soared to the point that they
mirror the nearly worldwide lack of confidence in George W. Bush.

Global distrust
of American leadership is reflected in increasing disapproval of the cornerstones of U.S. foreign
policy. Not only is there worldwide support for a withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, but there
also is considerable opposition to U.S. and NATO operations in Afghanistan. Western European
publics are at best divided about keeping troops there. In nearly every predominantly Muslim
country, overwhelming majorities want U.S. and NATO troops withdrawn from Afghanistan as soon as
possible. In addition, global support for the U.S.-led war on terrorism ebbs ever lower. And the
United States is the nation blamed most often for hurting the world's environment, at a time of
rising global concern about environmental issues.

U.S. ranks low, just above Iran on new peace index

May 30, 2007
U.S. ranks low, just above Iran on new peace index

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is among the least peaceful nations in the world, ranking 96th between Yemen and Iran, according to a new index released on Wednesday that evaluates 121 nations based on their peacefulness.

According to the Global Peace Index, created by The Economist Intelligence Unit, Norway is the most peaceful nation in the world and Iraq is the least, just after Russia, Israel and Sudan.

World Publics Reject US Role as the World Leader

April 17, 2007
World Publics Reject US Role as the World Leader

This is the fourth in a series of reports based on a worldwide poll about key international issues conducted by The Chicago Council on Global Affairs and WorldPublicOpinion.org, in cooperation with polling organizations around the world. The larger study includes polls in China , India, the United States, Indonesia, Russia, France, Thailand, Ukraine, Poland, Iran, Mexico, South Korea, the Philippines, Australia, Argentina, Peru, Israel and Armenia—plus the Palestinian territories.

The publics polled represent about 56 percent of the world’s population. Not all questions were asked in all countries.

Majorities in all 15 of the publics polled about the United States' role in the world reject the idea that "as the sole remaining superpower, the US should continue to be the preeminent world leader in solving international problems." However majorities in only two publics (Argentina and the Palestinian territories) say that the United States "should withdraw from most efforts to solve international problems." The preferred view in all of the other cases is that the United States "should do its share in efforts to solve international problems together with other
countries."

Poll: 58 percent want U.S. troops out of Iraq by 2008

March 13, 2007
Poll: 58 percent want U.S. troops out of Iraq by 2008

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Nearly six in ten Americans want to see U.S. troops leave Iraq either immediately or within a year, and more would rather have Congress running U.S. policy in the conflict than President Bush, according to a CNN poll out Tuesday.

Tuesday's poll found most Americans support a withdrawal from Iraq, with 21 percent wanting an immediate pullout and 37 percent saying troops should be home within a year. Another 39 percent said the troops should stay in Iraq as long as needed.

They were more closely divided on the issue of funding the president's "New Way Forward," with 52 percent saying Congress should block funds for additional troops and 43 percent opposing such a move.

Poll: US Third Most Hated Country on Earth

March 5, 2007
Poll: US Third Most Hated Country on Earth

The BBC has been tracking opinions about countries' influence in the world over three years (2005 – 2007). During that time most ratings have remained relatively stable. There has been improvement in ratings of India, a slight decline in views about Britain and a significant fall in positive evaluations of the United States. Russia, China, and France also lost ground over the period, mainly between 2005 and 2006.

"It appears that people around the world tend to look negatively on countries whose profile is marked by the use or pursuit of military power," said Steven Kull, director of PIPA. This includes Israel and the US, who have recently used military force, and North Korea and Iran, who are perceived as trying to develop nuclear weapons."