Global Trust in U.S. Declines Sharply Under Trump’s Second Term

Global views of the U.S. declined sharply during Trump's second term, with widespread distrust in his leadership, except for higher ratings in countries like Israel and Nigeria.

The United States is experiencing a significant decline in popularity across many countries during the second term of President Donald Trump, according to a study released by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center on Wednesday.

The survey, conducted in 24 countries, revealed that overall favorable ratings of the U.S. have decreased in 15 of them since the previous spring. The steepest declines in public opinion were observed in Mexico, Sweden, Poland, and Canada.

Participants were asked about their overall views of the United States, their perception of the country’s democracy, and their opinion of President Trump, including both his personal characteristics and his capability to manage major global issues.

Most of the interviews were conducted after the controversial meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on February 28 and before Trump announced the imposition of tariffs on various countries on April 2.

Mexico and Sweden showed the most dramatic drops in favorable opinion toward the United States, with Mexico’s positive ratings plunging by 32 percentage points (from 61% to 29%) and Sweden’s by 28 percentage points (from 47% to 19%) compared to 2024. Similarly, in Poland and Canada, U.S. popularity among adults dropped by more than 20 percentage points within a year. In Germany, the decline was also notable, with positive views falling from 49% to 33%, a 16-point drop.

In contrast, attitudes toward the United States remained relatively stable in the United Kingdom, Greece, Hungary, South Africa, Argentina, and India. Meanwhile, three countries — Israel, Nigeria, and Turkey — saw slight increases in favorable views of the U.S.

Israel emerged as the country with the highest percentage of positive assessments of the United States, with 83% of respondents viewing it favorably. Sweden recorded the most unfavorable sentiment, with 79% of people holding negative views. Despite the slight uptick in Turkey, the country still holds one of the lowest favorability rates for the U.S., with just 25% of adults expressing a positive opinion. In Germany, 66% of respondents had a negative view of the U.S.

Younger adults (ages 35 and under) across most countries tended to view the United States more positively than those aged 50 and above. This trend was especially pronounced in Brazil, where 73% of younger adults had a favorable opinion of the U.S., compared to only 37% of older adults, the majority of whom had an unfavorable view.

Political ideology also played a significant role in shaping opinions. In Israel, among the 51% of people identifying as right-leaning, 97% had a positive view of the United States. In Australia, a stark contrast emerged between ideological groups: 60% of right-leaning individuals viewed the U.S. positively, compared to just 12% on the left. In Germany, 63% of supporters of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party expressed favorable views of the U.S., compared to only 25% among those who do not support the party.

President Trump himself received predominantly negative ratings across the survey, with more than half of respondents in 19 countries expressing little or no confidence in his ability to lead on the global stage. Nevertheless, majorities in 18 countries acknowledged him as a “strong leader.” Overall, a median of 34% of adults said they had a lot or some confidence in Trump’s leadership in world affairs, while 62% said they had little or no confidence in him.

Trump’s highest confidence ratings came from Nigeria (79%), Israel (69%), Kenya (64%), Hungary (53%), and India (52%). Conversely, confidence in him was lowest in Mexico (8%), followed by Sweden (15%), Turkey (16%), Germany (18%), and Spain (19%).

In 17 countries, men reported greater confidence in Trump than women, with the gender gap being most pronounced in Sweden, Poland, and the United Kingdom. In Germany, the difference between men and women in confidence in Trump stood at 11 percentage points.

Right-leaning individuals tended to view Trump more favorably across all surveyed countries. Compared to his predecessor Joe Biden in 2024, Trump received lower ratings in 13 nations but higher ratings in six.

Trump scored his lowest marks on climate change, with a median of only 21% expressing confidence in his ability to address global warming. Just 33% believed he could effectively handle the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and 29% had confidence in his handling of conflicts involving Israel and its neighbors.