Iraq yanks Australians out of US embrace

Oct 3, 2007, 1:12 GMT

Sydney - Six out of 10 Australians oppose the Iraq war, only a third have positive feelings toward formal military ally the United States, and almost half want Canberra's foreign policy to be more independent of Washington, a survey released Wednesday revealed.

Alan Dupont, head of the US Studies Centre at the University of Sydney, noted a 'dramatic falling away' of confidence that the US could be trusted to manage world affairs. Trust in that regard fell from a 66-per-cent level in 2001 to 37 per cent.

The opinion poll of 1,213 respondents found three-quarters believe global warming to be just as serious a problem as Islamic terrorism, and they want both Canberra and Washington to set binding targets for greenhouse-gas reduction targets.

The findings on security issues reinforce a poll taken by an independent think tank last month. Almost three-quarters told the Sydney-based Lowy Institute for International Policy that they did not like US President George W Bush, and more than 60 per cent said they disagreed with US foreign policies.

The US Studies Centre poll also showed Australians with contradictory attitudes toward their principal ally, major trading partner and wartime saviour. Half said that they wanted a more independent foreign policy, but nine out of 10 said they expected Washington to continue providing security.

The seeming confusion was compounded when respondents were asked their level of trust in the ability of major powers to 'deal responsibly with world problems.'

While 59 per cent said they could trust the democratically elected US leadership, 57 per cent said they also trusted the Communist cadres who run China.

'It reflects two trends,' Dupont said. 'First, it's a diminution of Australians' attitudes to the US from the highs of a decade ago. And, second, views of China have moved in the opposite direction.'