Meer dan 60% van Europeanen vertrouwt EU niet

The number of Europeans who distrust the European Union has doubled over the past six years to a record high, with bailed-out Greeks and Cypriots having the least faith in the bloc, according to a new Eurobarometer poll.

An economic crisis, record unemployment and five eurozone bailouts have taken their toll on the standing of the European Union that last year was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize but is increasingly viewed as an overbearing, cumbersome bureaucracy.

Sixty percent of Europeans "tended not to trust the EU", according to Eurobarometer, a public opinion service of the European Commission, which released its spring findings this week.

That compares to the 32% level of distrust reported in early 2007 before the onset of the 2008/2009 global financial crisis and the ensuing euro zone debt crisis.