MADRID, Spain – U.S. midterm election results that signaled a power shift in the American political landscape and the resignation of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld were greeted with jubilation in many parts of the world Wednesday.

From Paris to Pakistan, politicians, analysts and citizens said they hoped the Democratic takeover of Congress and the departure of his combative defense secretary would force President Bush to adopt a more conciliatory approach on foreign policy issues.

In an extraordinary joint statement, more than 200 Socialist members of the European Parliament hailed the U.S. election results as "the beginning of the end of a six-year nightmare for the world."

In Paris, expatriates and French citizens packed the city's main American haunts to watch results.

One Frenchman, teacher Jean-Pierre Charpemtrat, 53, said it was about time U.S. voters figured out what much of the rest of the world already knew.

"Americans are realizing that you can't found the politics of a country on patriotic passion and reflexes," he said.

In Pakistan, opposition lawmaker Hafiz Hussain Ahmed said he welcomed the election result but was hoping for more. Mr. Bush "deserves to be removed, put on trial and given a Saddam-like death sentence," he said.

In Denmark, Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen told broadcaster TV2 he hoped the president and the new Congress would find "common ground on questions about Iraq and Afghanistan. The world needs a vigorous U.S.A."

Mr. Rumsfeld was both deeply hated and grudgingly admired overseas for his unwavering stance on Iraq and support for controversial Bush administration policies like the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, and harsh interrogation methods. In Afghanistan, the government of President Hamid Karzai expressed sadness over Mr. Rumsfeld's abrupt departure.

"We are sad that he has resigned," said Jawed Ludin, the chief of staff for Mr. Karzai. "We in Afghanistan are very pleased and very grateful for [Rumsfeld's] support for Afghanistan."

In Italy, Premier Romano Prodi said Mr. Rumsfeld's resignation was particularly significant.

"Even though U.S. politics had already started changing, Rumsfeld's resignation means an accentuation of this change," Mr. Prodi said.