The poll comes as China is involved in multiple trade and diplomatic disputes with its neighbors and other countries around the world, prompted in part by a more aggressive diplomatic approach.
The poll conducted in 14 countries showed that the majority of people had an unfavorable opinion of China. It took place from June 10 to August 3 among 14,276 adults in the 14 countries by telephone.
In Australia, 81% said they have an unfavorable view of China, according to the survey, an increase of 24 percentage points from last year.
The increase corresponds to increased tensions in the bilateral relationship after Australia led the call for an international investigation into the origins of the coronavirus. China responded on the trade front, suspending imports of Australian beef, imposing high tariffs on the country’s barley and launching an anti-dumping investigation on imports of Australian wine.
While the survey showed Australia had the largest increase in negative attitudes towards China, other countries also showed an upward trend: those with an unfavorable view towards China reached 74% in Britain, an increase of 19 percentage points compared with last year; 71% in Germany, a rise of 15 points; and 73% in the United States, a rise of 13 points.
The 14 countries surveyed were the United States, Canada, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, and South Korea. The survey’s margin of error ranged from 3.1 percentage points in South Korea to 4.2 percentage points in Belgium.
In most of the countries surveyed, those with higher income levels were as likely as those with lower income levels to have negative opinions. Negative views also held up across all levels of education, as those with a post-secondary degree or higher were just as likely to have unfavorable views of China as those with less education.
Furthermore, in nine of the countries surveyed (Spain, Germany, Canada, the Netherlands, the US, the UK, South Korea, Sweden and Australia) negative opinions have reached their highest level in the 12 or more years the center has been running. the survey in those countries, according to the Pew Research Center.
Many democratic countries around the world, including those surveyed, condemned China earlier this year when it pushed through a new national security law in Hong Kong that critics say violates the rights promised to the former British colony when it was handed over to the Chinese dominance.
One of the most important factors regarding China’s reputation abroad has been the coronavirus. The virus emerged late last year in the central Chinese city of Wuhan and has since spread across the world. China has been criticized for not being quick enough in its initial response and for trying to cover up early reports of the virus.
The survey found that the majority had a negative opinion of how China has handled the coronavirus, with a median of 61% in the 14 countries that said China had mishandled the outbreak. Even more respondents (84%) said the United States has mishandled the outbreak.
Those who believed that China fared poorly in dealing with the pandemic were much more likely to view the country in a negative light.
Citizens of the surveyed countries also do not trust China’s leader, Xi Jinping, with an average of 78% saying they do not trust him to do the right thing in world affairs.
Only the president of the United States, Donald Trump, had a worse reputation among those surveyed, with an average of 83% saying they do not trust him.
Trump has been one of China’s most vocal critics, continuing to blame Beijing for the coronavirus as he tries to downplay the impact the virus has had on the US, which has reported the world’s highest death toll from Covid. -19.
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