Citizens for Global Solutions

U.S. GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT | Attitudes on U.S. - Islamic Relations

Attitudes towards U.S. - Islamic Relations

At the recent Conference on US-Islamic World Relations in Qatar, comments by Steven Kull of Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) reinforced the fact that the majority of the American public wants a principle and engaged foreign policy, even with respect to the Middle East and the Islamic community.

According to Kull, the American public’s approach to US-Islamic relations emphasizes:

A reluctance to act unilaterally: Kull states, for instance, that Americans “think the US tends to play the role of world policeman more than it should, in general and in the Middle East.”

Even-handedness in dealing with all sides of a conflict: “[W]hen the question gives them opportunity to be evenhanded, clear majorities go for that position. For example, asked who they blame for the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict, only 24% said they blamed the Palestinians more; 6% said the Israelis; while 65% said they blamed both sides equally.”

A desire for cooperative, international solutions: “The kind of approach Americans like the most is one that involves other countries, even if that means the US will have less control. For example, in a pool question that asked about the US working through the quartet (the US, Russia, the EU, and the UN), only one in four endorsed the argument that “this is a bad thing, because the US will not have as much control over the process, leading to pressures on the US to make compromises that could be harmful to Israel.” Rather, 64% endorsed the argument that working through the quartet ‘is a good thing, because it means that the US will not have to bear all of the political and economic costs on its own, and that with the help of others, success is more likely.’”

A belief that one should “follow the international rules of the road,” and punish those who do not: “The argument that did persuade them [for US intervention in Iraq during the first Gulf War] was that Iraq had violated the international law against cross-border aggression.”

Perhaps most important of all is Kull’s claim that “Americans reject the idea that there is an inevitable clash of civilizations between Islam and the US. Remember that the belief that people of different cultures get along is a cornerstone of American culture.”

Interestingly, the findings from Kull’s research directly relate to messaging advice from US in the World: Talking Global Issues with Americans – A Practical Guide. US in the World presents a series of messaging techniques shown to be effective when communicating with the public about US global engagement. It is an easy-to-use, portable toolkit designed to aid individuals and organizations in translating foreign policies to promote principled and collaborative U.S. global engagement in an increasingly interconnected world.

Last Updated June 30, 2005

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