Europeans are reluctant for their countries to take a bigger role in global affairs but want to cut dependence on the United States, a poll has found.
Respondents want to stay out of any potential conflict between the United States and China, according to the poll released on Wednesday which shows 60 per cent would “remain neutral” in a military clash over Taiwan.
The multi-country survey shows just 23 per cent would want their country to take America’s side if “China were to invade Taiwan and the US came to its defence and joined the war.”
It also found that 74 per cent felt Europe should cut its dependence on US security guarantees and invest in its own defensive capabilities.
However, the poll published by the European Council on Foreign Relations, which covered 16,168 respondents from 11 European Union countries, also found hostility to Chinese ownership of key European infrastructure, such as bridges or ports (65 per cent), tech companies (52 per cent), and owning a newspaper in their country (58 per cent).
The findings reveal ongoing suspicions between European public opinion and the US. “Perceived closeness of Europe to the US does not translate into a willingness to support the US militarily against China, in a hypothetical conflict over Taiwan,” said Jana Puglierin, one of the report’s authors. “The chief takeaway from our survey is that Europeans want to see the EU become more self-reliant in foreign policy.”
The figures also show how Russia’s image has plummeted since its war on Ukraine began last year, with 64 per cent of respondents saying they saw it as a competitor or an opponent, double the figure from the same poll in 2021.
The figures for people with strongly negative views of Russia ranged from 74 per cent in Denmark and 71 per cent in Poland, to 62 per cent in Germany, 37 per cent in Italy and just 17 per cent in Bulgaria.
While the US has largely restored its reputation as an “ally” and “partner” of the EU, there are concerns about the future, with 56 per cent saying that if Donald Trump were re-elected it would “weaken” transatlantic relations
The survey comes two weeks before the European Commission is set to publish its first-ever EU economic security doctrine, where it tries to define its geopolitical place amid escalating tensions between China and the US, its two biggest trading partners.
The Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, will present the strategy to EU leaders at a summit in Brussels on 29-30 June, arguing that the bloc needs to create some distance from Beijing if it is to protect its essential interests. This would echo French calls for the EU to pursue “strategic autonomy,” hardening trade defences and intervening ever more deeply in key industrial sectors.
The ECFR data is published just a day after data released by the EU’s polling agency showed that Europeans trust the EU more than their own governments. The Eurobarometer poll found that while just 32 per cent of people believe that Europe is going “in the right direction”, it was higher than the 26 per cent figure for their own country.
And while 47 per cent said Europe was going in the wrong direction, 61 per cent said so for their own country. The pollsters said the war in Ukraine, high energy prices and spiralling inflation raised the EU’s profile and expectations that it can deal with these issues.
During World War II, Joseph Stalin imposed a draconian punishment for soldiers who retreated or left their posts without authorization: they would be made to
On October 1, 1993, a 12-year-old girl was kidnapped at knifepoint from her bedroom in Petaluma, California, during a sleepover with two friends, while her mo
Born on May 1, 1999, in the United States, Jessica Woynilko, professionally known as Tiffany Stratton, had a background in gymnastics before venturing into t
The New York judge presiding over the civil fraud trial of former President Donald Trump was blasted on social media on Monday after cameras caught him smilin
