Negative views of China are nearing historic highs. A new survey says 67 percent of adults across 24 countries now hold unfavorable views of China. In addition, half of Americans see China as the biggest threat to the United States.
From February to May, the Pew Research Center asked 27,000 adults for their opinions on China-linked topics. The respondents came from countries across North America, Western Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America, and Africa.
Here’s how they answered.
71 percent said the Chinese Communist Party does not contribute to global peace and stability.
Nearly 60 percent responded that Beijing interferes with the affairs of other countries to a great or fair extent.
76 percent believe the CCP designs its foreign policy without taking the interests of the countries it interacts with into account.
Asked about Xi Jinping’s ability to “do the right thing” on the world stage, respondents in most of the 24 countries voiced little to no confidence.
Beijing has worked to paint itself as a global peace-broker in recent months. This included proposing an agreement on how to end the Russian war on Ukraine, and mediating a peace deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia. But experts point out that China’s human rights record and territorial disputes with other countries contradict that message.
It’s worth noting that countries with stronger economies tended to report overwhelmingly negative views of Beijing. Smaller economies, which may be more dependent on Chinese money, responded more favorably. However, responses from such nations have still trended downward in recent years.