Poll: World losing interest in blocking Iran
Wednesday, March 12, 2008 Free Headline Alerts
A new BBC poll found that international support for tough sanctions and military action against Iran has fallen over the past year.
In a 2006 survey, more than 35 percent in 14 of 21 countries polled supported taking military action against Iran over its defiance of calls by the UN and the international community to stop enriching uranium. In 2008, the number of countries in which 35 percent or more favored military action dropped to nine.
Most of the 30,000 polled favored allowing Iran to produce nuclear fuel under UN supervision.
Over 40 percent of those polled in Middle Eastern countries favored the diplomatic track as the best way to solve the conflict.
In Britain, support for severe action against Iran dropped to 34 percent, down from 43 percent in 2006, and a similar decline was reported in Australia and Germany. All in all, only nine percent support a military operation against the Islamic Republic worldwide.
The United States and South Korea were the only countries in which respondents favored tougher action against Iran.
Support for such measures has dropped 10 points in Australia (52 per cent to 42 per cent), nine points in Britain (43 per cent to 34 per cent), nine points in Germany (46 per cent to 37 per cent), seven points in Canada (52 per cent to 45 per cent) and six points in the United States (66 per cent to 60 per cent).
Only three countries show an increase in support for economic sanctions or military strikes: an increase of nine points among Israelis (62 per cent to 71 per cent), six points among South Koreans (47 per cent to 53 per cent), and 12 points among Turkish respondents (21 per cent to 33 per cent).
The poll was conducted following news of the U.S. National Intelligence Estimate that found Iran had stopped pursuing nuclear weapons in 2003.