March 20 marks the 20th anniversary of the U.S. starting the war in Iraq. According to a poll of global internet users conducted by CGTN, 93.15 percent of respondents believe the U.S. should account for the war crimes it committed in Iraq.

Twenty years ago, the U.S. and its allies claimed that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and illegally launched a military attack against it without UN authorization. It was subsequently proven that the so-called "weapons of mass destruction" were just lies. To this day, 94.6 percent of global respondents believe there was no legitimate cause for the U.S. to launch a war in Iraq. It was completely wrong. 

During the two decades, the U.S. military campaigns in Iraq have caused at least 200,000 civilian casualties and displaced millions of people. Weapons such as depleted uranium munitions have caused massive fetal deformities and cancer in the population. U.S. soldiers were also frequently exposed in scandals of detention, abuse and even killings of civilians and prisoners of war in Iraq. More than 90 percent of respondents believe the U.S. is responsible for the war crimes it committed in Iraq.

Furthermore, the U.S. has spent more than $2 trillion on various projects in Iraq, and 4,572 U.S. troops have died there. The United States' own fiscal capacity and international reputation, as well as the credibility of the U.S. government among its citizens, have likewise been severely damaged. In the opinion of 93 percent of global respondents, launching the war in Iraq was also a complete failure for the U.S. government.

For 20 years, it has been proven that the so-called "democratic system" of the United States has not brought freedom and peace to Iraq, as promised by the U.S. government. Instead, it caused the collapse of the previous order, rampant terrorist activities, serious social fragmentation and a loss of livelihood for many ordinary people. A total of 94.56 percent of respondents believe that American-style democracy cannot bring real freedom to the world.

The poll was released on CGTN's English, Spanish, French, Arabic and Russian platforms, with over 80,000 people voting within 24 hours.