Attitudes of Czech Citizens to the Attack on Iraq and Opinions on the U.S. Role in International Politics

The attack on Iraq is generally supported by a mere 21 % of Czech citizens, while 72 % disagree with it. Support for the attack without the mandate of the Security Council of the UN is even lower. In such a case, 10 % of respondents expressed their agreement with the attack, 83 % were against. Only 18 % of people think that the attack on Iraq will bring positive effects in relation to suppressing international terrorism, on the other hand 70 % are of the opinion that the war will not contribute to fighting world terrorism in any way. More than four fifths of people in the CZ (82 %) think that the US in their foreign policy prioritize their own power and economic interests, and almost three quarters believe they do not take into consideration the opinion of the world community. According to less than three fifths of citizens (57 %) the current foreign policy of the US represents a threat to today’s world, while only about three people out of ten (31 %) have the opposite opinion. Czech society is relatively significantly divided in opinion on whether or not the United States in their foreign policy try to ensure stability and peace in the world or if they stand up for the defence of freedom, democracy and human rights or not. While for the latter thesis there is a slight prevalence of agreement (at the ratio of 48 % to 42 %), in the former case there are a little more of those that disagree (49 %) than those people who think that the US tries to install stability and peace in the world (44 %). The opinion that in relation to undemocratic regimes the Unites States is entitled to use military force is shared by one fifth of Czech citizens (20 %), whereas seven people out of ten (71 %) oppose it. The results of the survey have clearly shown the existence of a very strong tie between the opinions on American foreign policy and the attitude towards the attack on Iraq.