Amid the ongoing occupation of Iraq, most Americans are opposed to using military force to promote democracy, according to a new survey released Thursday.
"Only 35 percent favoured using military force to overthrow dictators. Less than one in five favoured the US threatening to use military force if countries do not institute democratic reforms," the poll by the Programme on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) and Chicago Council on Foreign Relations found.
Fully 74 percent of those surveyed - including 60 percent of those identifying themselves as Republicans - said that the goal of overthrowing Iraq's authoritarian government and establishing a democracy was not reason enough to fight a war.
And 72 percent said that the US involvement in Iraq has made them feel worse about the idea of using military force to foster democracy in the future.
"More broadly most Americans do not appear to have been persuaded by President Bush's State of the Union argument that promoting democracy is a critical means for fighting terrorism and making the world safer," said Steven Kull, director of PIPA.
Interestingly though 78 percent said that democracy is the best form of government only 50 percent said that it is the best for all countries and 28 percent said they believe that nearly all countries will become democracies.
Fully 74 percent favoured helping emerging democracies with aid and technical assistance in conducting elections. And 66 percent favored sending monitors to certify that elections are conducted fairly, the poll found.
On the multilateral front 66 percent said that, when working to promote democracy, it is better to work through the United Nations because such efforts will be seen as more legitimate.
The poll, a joint project of the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations and the Program on International Policy Attitudes, was conducted by Knowledge Networks September 15-21 among 808 respondents across the country, with a margin of error of 3.5-4 percent.
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