Bush ‘bigger threat’ to peace than Bin Laden
A majority of people around the world believe the United States was wrong to invade and occupy Iraq and poses a significant threat to world peace, according to a BBC poll published on Monday.
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| Bush: internationally unpopular |
The poll surveyed more than 11,000 people in 11 countries, revealing that well over half of all those questioned had an unfavourable attitude towards the American president.
56 percent felt the United States was wrong to attack Iraq, including 81 percent of Russian respondents and 63 percent of those polled in France.
In Jordan and Indonesia, well over half of those asked felt the United States posed a greater danger to world peace and stability than al-Qaeda.
In five of the 11 countries, a majority of respondents stated their belief that the US was more dangerous than Iran, named by Bush as part of an ‘axis of evil’ with Iraq and North Korea last year.
A majority in eight of the countries thought America was more dangerous than Syria, a country Washington accuses of sponsoring terrorism.
However, unfavourable attitudes towards the US administration do not carry over to the American people, with a majority rating the country fairly and 40 percent expressing unfavourable remarks.
The poll, commissioned by a TV programme entitled “What the World Thinks of America”, was conducted in May and June in Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, France, Indonesia, Israel, Jordan, South Korea, Russia and the United States.