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WASHINGTON: As President Barack Obama prepares to make a major address on the tumultuous changes spreading throughout the Middle East, a new survey finds that America’s image in Arab and Muslim nations has further eroded.
The survey, conducted before Osama bin Laden’s killing, shows that only 11 per cent people in Pakistan view the United States and President Barack Obama favourably, compared to 17 per cent last year and 16 per cent in 2009.
Views of the US remain negative in other Muslim and Arab nations as well, as they have been for nearly a decade. In Jordan and Turkey also views are more negative than they were one year ago.
With the exception of Indonesia, President Obama remains unpopular in the Muslim nations polled, and most disapprove of the way he has handled calls for political change roiling the Middle East.
The survey – conducted between March 21 and April 26 – notes that many of the concerns that have driven animosity towards the US in recent years are still present – a perception that the US acts unilaterally, opposition to the war on terror and fears of America as a military threat.
Washington’s Pew Research Centre, which conducted the survey, reports that as many as 78 per cent people in Pakistan say laws should be based strictly on religion.
