US Allies: Iraq War Increased Terror Threat
Not only are Shiites in Iraq upset with poor US provision of security, but the publics in major US allies and neighbors are now afraid that the Iraq war as increased the terrorist threat in the world, according to an AP poll..
The report says, ‘ The AP polls were conducted by Ipsos, an international polling firm, in Britain, Canada, France, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Spain and the United States.
While a majority in each of the countries polled except the United States said the terrorism threat was greater now, fewer than one in 10 in any of the European countries said the terror threat had been decreased by the war.
In Canada and France, just over half felt it had been increased, whereas in Germany, three-fourths thought the Iraq war has made the terror problem worse.
Concern about terrorism was very high in Italy and Germany, where about seven in 10 said they were very worried or somewhat worried, and especially in Spain, 85 percent, where residents also have to contend with domestic terrorism by Basque separatists. The high levels of concern about terrorism are probably linked to the recent history of terror in those countries, one public opinion analyst said.‘
The publics in these countries also do not like President Bush at all. Since much of what the US accomplishes in the world depends heavily on the cooperation of allies, this poll raises a severe question about whether Bush has become a liability to US foreign policy goals and global influence.