March 30, 2005
CNN
Image: A 2002 satellite image shows facilities near the town of Natanz.
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Almost six out of 10 adults in Britain, France and Germany say that Iran does not pose a nuclear threat to Europe, according to the findings of a new CNN/TIME poll.
Iran says its nuclear program is nothing for the world to fear and will only be used to generate much-needed electricity. But Washington and the EU fear Iran could use its nuclear plants to produce bombs.
In his State of the Union Address in February, U.S. President George W. Bush named Iran as "the world's primary state sponsor of terror."
He said the United States must "confront regimes that continue to harbor terrorists and pursue weapons of mass murder," citing Iran and Syria.
In February, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said an attack on Iran over its alleged nuclear program is "not on the agenda at this point."
Adults in France were more likely to think Iran posed a nuclear threat (34%) than in Germany (30%) and Britain (27%.)
Of those adults surveyed who did believe Iran posed a nuclear threat, 59% said diplomacy was the best way to handle the situation.
Just 3% said using military force alone was the best course of action. Support for military action was highest in Britain (7%) and lowest in Germany (0%.)
An additional 22% across all countries supported the combined approach of using both diplomacy and military force.
Other key findings from the research showed that just 17% of adults in key European countries trusted politicians to tell the public the truth about the prospect of potential terrorist attacks.
This compares to some 30% who trusted the media and 43% who trusted senior police officials for information on terror attacks. International aid agencies were the most trusted information source (51% of those surveyed.)
The poll was conducted by TNS, the market information group and the world's largest custom research company.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/03/30/iran.poll/index.html