EU: Almost two out of three Irish citizens favour sending Irish soldiers to Iraq, although a majority believe the US-led war was unjustified, according to a Eurobarometer poll published yesterday.
Ireland's 63 per cent in favour of sending peacekeeping troops to Iraq compares with an EU average of 44 per cent.
The poll, which was conducted between October 8th and 16th, showed wide discrepancies on the issue throughout the EU, with 77 per cent of Danes wanting to send their troops, compared with just 28 per cent of Germans.
Most EU citizens believe that the United Nations and the Iraqi provisional government should be in charge of the rebuilding of Iraq, although most want Washington to pay for it.
In common with other Europeans, most Irish citizens favour sending humanitarian aid to the country and of making some financial contribution to reconstruction.
Most Europeans would like the UN and its peacekeeping forces rather than the US and its allies to guarantee security in Iraq during reconstruction. Only 14 per cent of Irish respondents favoured the retention of the task by the US-led coalition.
Two-thirds of EU citizens believe that the war was unjustified, with Denmark emerging as the only member-state where a majority believe it was right. Even Britain and Spain, which were Washington's staunchest EU allies, showed majorities against the war.
81 per cent of Europeans and 87 per cent of Irish citizens want the EU to play an important role in the Middle East peace process. Two years after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, most Europeans feel that the threat of terrorism remains strong.
Irish citizens feel more secure, however, with 69 per cent describing the threat as weak.
