JEDDAH, 23 September 2006 — World opinion does not favor aggressive measures to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons, according to a new 25-nation opinion poll conducted for BBC World Service.
Asked what the international community should do if Iran continues to produce nuclear fuel, the most popular approach that the poll respondents favored was that of using diplomatic efforts (39 percent), while only 11 percent favored military strikes.
An average of 72 percent of those questioned said they would be very (43 percent) or somewhat concerned (29 percent) if Iran were to develop nuclear weapons.
The poll findings show that only one citizen in five (17 percent), across the 25 countries, believe that Iran is producing nuclear fuel strictly for energy needs, while 60 percent assume that Iran is also trying to develop nuclear weapons. The poll also revealed that 52 percent of people across all countries favor a new UN effort to prevent additional countries from developing nuclear fuel, which can be enriched further for use in nuclear weapons. Only one in three (33 percent) favored preserving the existing system (based on the Non-Proliferation Treaty) that prohibits new countries from developing nuclear weapons but not from developing nuclear fuel.
The survey of 27,407 respondents was conducted for the BBC World Service by the international polling firm GlobeScan together with the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA). GlobeScan coordinated fieldwork from May through July 2006 (prior to the Israeli war on Lebanon).
In a press statement issued to the world media yesterday, Steven Kull, director of the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) at the University of Maryland, said: “At this point the world public favors addressing the (Iran nuclear) problem through diplomacy rather than a confrontational approach.”
GlobeScan President Doug Miller said: “The poll reveals a worldwide mandate for stricter international controls on the production of nuclear fuels that could be used in weapons. At the same time, our Turkey and Egyptian findings suggest a sense of nuclear entitlement (for peaceful purposes) among the have-not countries particularly in the Muslim world.”
In his speech at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, US President George W. Bush appealed to the people of Iran to take control of their future and cautioned their leaders against continuing their quest for nuclear weapons. But, Bush added, the United States was pursuing a diplomatic solution to the crisis over Iran.
According to the International Herald Tribune, Bush’s speech appeared mostly conciliatory in tone, “certainly when compared to his call before the assembly in 2002 for action against Iraq.”
The mainstream US media is, however, gearing up for a military attack on Iran. “When the United States’ biggest newsweekly devotes five pages to scoping out a US air war against Iran, it is yet another sign that the wheels of our nation’s war-spin machine are turning faster toward yet another unprovoked attack on another country,” points out Norman Solomon, the respected US media critic, in his latest commentary. He was referring to Time magazine’s cover story on Iran in its latest edition.
Time magazine reports that “from the State Department to the White House to the highest reaches of military command, there is a growing sense that a showdown with Iran may be impossible to avoid.”
The 25 countries that the BBC poll covered included Egypt, US, UK, Germany, Australia, India, Iraq, the Philippines and Turkey.
