Global opposition to US spying, drones

A new poll finds widespread global opposition to US surveillance programs and its deadly drone strikes throughout the world, as well as a decline in the view that the US respects the personal freedoms of its own people.

In nearly all of the 44 countries polled, majorities oppose monitoring by the US government of emails and phone calls of foreign leaders or their citizens, according to the Pew Research Center poll.

Disclosures by former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden have exposed widespread domestic and international surveillance by the NSA, triggering political condemnation in the US and around the world.

“There is a lot of opposition to the US intercepting the communications of leaders and ordinary citizens,” said Richard Wike, director of global attitudes research at Pew.

The poll showed that the NSA spying revelations have hurt America’s global reputation. The impact was particularly strong in Germany and Brazil, where Snowden’s revelations indicated that the NSA had spied on the leaders of those two countries.

The poll also found opposition to America’s use of drone strikes to target “suspected terrorists” is growing around the world. In 39 of 44 countries surveyed, majorities or pluralities oppose such drone strikes.

Deadly drone attacks have become a signature tactic of the Obama administration’s so-called war on terrorism. The administration has carried out strikes in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia and elsewhere, often resulting in the death of innocent civilians in those countries.

Opposition to American drone attacks is particularly strong in the Middle East. In Jordan for example, 90 percent of those surveyed oppose the tactic, up from 87 percent opposed last year.