Poll shows mistrust of US

From correspondents in Washington
December 03, 2005
PEOPLE in Arab nations believe the Iraq war has brought less peace, more terrorism and contrary to Washington's claims, will result in less democracy, according to a new poll.

The survey, in six Arab countries, also found that a plurality of respondents got their news from the Al-Jazeera satellite television network, currently at the centre of a storm over an alleged US idea to bomb its headquarters.

When asked which country was the biggest threat to them, most chose Israel or the United States, while France was nominated as the country most respondents would like to be a superpower.

The University of Maryland/Zogby International poll was conducted in Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in October.

Eighty-one per cent of respondents said the Iraq war had brought "less peace" to the Middle East, while only six per cent believed it had enhanced peace.

Seventy-eight per cent of people questioned believed that the Iraq war had resulted in more terrorism than before, while 58 per cent it had brought less democracy, with only nine per cent believing it enhanced democratic development.

While the administration of President George W. Bush frequently argues that it has liberated Iraqis from Saddam Hussein, only six per cent of those surveyed believed that the Iraqi people were better off after the war. Seventy-seven per cent thought they were worse off.

Only six per cent thought spreading democracy was an objective in the war in Iraq, while seventy six per cent thought control of oil fields was important, and 68 per cent believed support for Israel was key motivating factor.

The survey makes unwelcome reading for US foreign policy officials, who have repeatedly tried to improve the US standing in the Middle East. Under Secretary of Public Diplomacy Karen Hughes saw some of that hostility during a trip to the Middle East in September.

Pollsters also asked, in a world with one superpower, which nation respondents would like to fulfil that role.

Twenty-one per cent said France, 13 per cent said China and 10 per cent said Pakistan. Only six per cent voted for the United States, which came in just behind Britain, at seven per cent.

Forty-five per cent of those surveyed said they watch Al Jazeera most for international news, followed by 11 per cent for Dubai-based MBC.

Britain's Daily Mirror newspaper reported the existence of a memo which summarised a conversation between President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair in which the US president was reported to have wanted to bomb the channel's headquarters.

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