A stronger United Nations is the preference of a majority of people around the world, a new survey by Press Trust Of India says. People said they want to see the United Nations strengthened, so it can increase its role in three main areas. The three main areas they want to see a stronger UN are in peacekeeping, fighting terror and stopping nuclear proliferation.
The poll covered 18 countries representing 56 per cent of the world’s population. A large majority of those polled think the UN Security Council should have additional power so it can authorise military force to prevent genocide. The countries with the greatest support for this position are France, Israel and the US.
The Chicago Council on Global Affairs and WorldPublicOpinion.Org ran the survey, with assistance from polling organisations around the world.
Stronger UN: Military Power
In eight countries, a majority of people said it should be the UN’s responsibility to intervene militarily to protect people suffering from human rights abuse. The top two countries taking that position were China and the USA. 69 percent of Palestinians also held that opinion.
In India, 66 per cent of those surveyed were of the opinion that the UN Security Council should be able to authorise the use of force to defend a country that has been attacked. 63 per cent thought force should also be authorised so they can prevent severe human rights violations, such as genocide. 60 per cent also think the Security Council should be able to authorise the use of force to prevent a country from supporting terrorist groups.
Indians were less strident on preventing nuclear proliferation, surprising researchers. According to the results, 53 per cent supported giving the Security Council the power to prevent new countries from acquiring nuclear weapons. 50 per cent believe the UNSC should also prevent countries from producing weapons-grade nuclear fuel.
The editor of WorldPublicOpinion.org, Steven Kull, says “people around the world are more open to multilateral action than their governments.”
Data Source: worldpublicopinion.org
