Global public is undergoing unprecedented transformation. Latest, published mid-July 2026 survey Pew investigation Center, 1 of the most renowned American investigation centers, yields results that would have seemed incredible a fewer years ago.
For the first time in the past of measurements, in most of the countries surveyed China is more affirmative than the United States. This image coup is not just a momentary anomaly, but reflects profound changes in architecture international relations and increasing disappointment with American leadership.
Image hegemony fracture
The Pew investigation Center survey was conducted in the spring of 2026 on a massive example of over 42,000 adult respondents from 36 countries, representing all continents. The results are clear: the image advantage, which for decades characterized Washington, was completely reversed. Today, in most of the countries under investigation, Beijing is seen in a more affirmative light.
Especially striking are the changes in the closest neighbours and conventional allies of the USA. By 2023, 57 percent of Canadians were affirmative about their confederate neighbor, while Chinese sympathy was only 14 percent. present these proportions have changed dramatically: 44 percent of Canadians talk positively about China, while the US image has fallen to 33 percent. A akin trend was observed in Mexico, where sympathy for Beijing besides overtakes this for Washington.
The United States has maintained an image advantage in only six of the 36 countries surveyed. Among them were Asian-Pacific countries India, Japan, the Philippines and South Korea, where China’s abroad policy frequently concerns regional security. However, even there, as in the case of South Korea, the American predominance has been importantly depleted compared to erstwhile years.
Xi Jinping raises greater assurance than Donald Trump
Another indicator of global sentiment is the level of assurance in the leaders of both powers. Although both Donald Trump, holding his second term, and Xi Jinping, evidence comparatively low support rates on a global scale, the Chinese leader is ahead of his American counterpart.
This difference is peculiarly evident in Europe. In countries specified as Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden or the United Kingdom, assurance in Xi Jinping outweighs assurance in Donald Trump of two-digit values. Although in no of these countries, the support for the Chinese president does not exceed half of the respondents (the highest score is 37 percent in the UK), this is inactive a clear contrast to the increasing scepticism of Europeans towards the American President.
In regions specified as Latin America, which historically was a region of exclusive Washington influence, a progressive crack is observed. The countries of this region, which previously saw the US as the most reliable partner, are now divided in their assessments, and any of them are clearly inclined towards closer relations with China, seeing them as a more unchangeable economical partner.
The story of American freedom is losing its shine
One of the fewer areas where the United States traditionally declassed China was the issue of respect for human rights and individual freedoms. Although globally more people inactive believe that the Washington government respects the freedoms of its citizens more than the Beijing authorities, this gap is shrinking at an alarming rate.
This decline is driven by a drastic breakdown of religion in American civilian liberties. For example, in Sweden, the percent of people who believe that the US respects individual freedoms fell from 61 percent in 2021 to just 27 percent today. Similar, exceeding 25 percent points of decline were recorded in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain. At the same time, in many countries, the proportion of respondents who believe that China is improving its standards in this area is growing, albeit slowly.
The results of the Pew investigation Center survey leave no illusions. Donald Trump's second word and its associated turbulence in American home and abroad politics reap a immense image harvest. On the another hand, the consistent construction of Chinese soft power, combined with global economical initiatives, is starting to bring tangible results. While the planet has inactive late seen the rivalry of powers through the prism of unequivocal American dominance, today, in mid-2026, the global public clearly signals readiness to accept the new, multipolar order of the world.
Source:
- Pew investigation Center, “People in Many Countries Now View China More Positively Than the U.S.”, Jonathan Schulman, Laura Silver, Laura Clancy, William Miner, July 15, 2026.
- Analysis of public opinion surveys in 36 countries conducted in the spring of 2026.
Leszek B. Glass
Email: [email protected]
