Thumbs down for Bush
US foreign policy alienates Europe
WASHINGTON - The power exerted by the United States in the world is viewed increasingly negatively in Europe, according to a new study.
The survey on transatlantic relations, published by the German Marshall Fund of the United States and Italy's Compagnia di San Paolo, revealed a big gulf between America and Europe on issues such as the use of force and the US role in the world.
Advertisement
It questioned 11,000 people in the US and 10 European countries in June.
It showed that 58 per cent of Europeans who live in Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Holland, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain and Turkey wanted a more independent approach for Europe on international security and diplomatic issues.
The survey also showed that 76 per cent of Europeans disapproved of current US foreign policy, a rise of 20 percentage points over two years.
'For the first time since we have done the polls, a majority of Europeans does not want strong US leadership,' said Mr William Drozdiak, executive director of the German Marshall Fund's Transatlantic Centre in Brussels.
'A lot of Europeans have begun to fear that at a time when they have created a Europe that is safe, secure, strong and free for the first time in history, they will be dragged into a misbegotten war abroad because of their association with the US.'
Added Mr Craig Kennedy, the fund's president: 'If this trend continues, we may be looking at a redefinition of the fundamentals of the transatlantic relationship from a first-choice partnership to an optional alliance when mutually convenient.
'However, a strong transatlantic foundation, based on common values and social and economic linkages, continues to drive the relationship.'
That comment was supported by the survey, which found that majorities of those surveyed in both Europe and the US insisted the two sides had not grown further apart. Both sides thought they shared enough common values to cooperate on world problems.
Fifty-two per cent of Europeans said they had a favourable opinion of the US.
According to the poll, Americans and Europeans agreed on the big threats facing their societies, such as terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, but they differed sharply on how to respond.
While 79 per cent of Americans supported strong European Union leadership in world affairs, 58 per cent of Europeans found strong US leadership undesirable.
The French and Spaniards showed the most hostility towards the US and its world leadership role, with 73 per cent and 76 per cent of them respectively saying they saw America negatively or very negatively.
Seventy-six per cent of Europeans disapproved of US President George W. Bush's foreign policies, but 51 per cent of Americans approved.
The two sides disagreed on the use of force: 41 per cent of Europeans said that war could achieve just ends, compared to 82 per cent of Americans.
And while 54 per cent of Americans thought military strength was the best way to ensure peace, only 28 per cent of Europeans agreed. -- AFP,Financial Times
AI
