Once he takes office, President-elect Barack Obama will have to navigate a world that has grown highly critical of the United States. Since 2001, the Pew Global Attitudes Project has documented a decline in America’s international image amid widespread opposition to U.S. foreign policy.
The environment continues to be a cause of major concern for publics around the world. Majorities in 14 of the 24 countries surveyed rate global warming as a very serious problem, and the proportion offering that view has increased since last year in 11 of the 20 countries for which trends are available. When asked […]
Since Communism’s Fall, Social Trust Has Fallen in Eastern Europe
Of the three major European leaders for whom confidence levels were investigated in 2008, Pew data show that German Chancellor Angela Merkel receives the highest praise for having good judgment in foreign affairs. The opposite is the case for Vladimir Putin: During this time of political transition from Russian president to prime minister, Putin’s ratings […]
Support for free markets is increasing across Latin America, including in some countries such as Venezuela and Brazil that are governed by left-leaning presidents. Clear majorities in five of the seven Latin American countries surveyed say that “most people are better off in a free market economy, even though some people are rich and some […]
Around the world, confidence in President Bush as a world leader continues to erode. But Russian President Vladimir Putin fares no better when it comes to international public opinion. Aside from Russia itself, where Putin is increasingly popular, there are just a handful of countries where majorities express even some confidence in the Russian leader. […]
Perceptions of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians differ considerably across regions. As in the past, Americans’ strong pro-Israel stance sets them apart from other publics. By more than four-to-one (49%-11%), Americans say they sympathize with Israel rather than Palestinians, a balance that is largely unchanged from past years. In many countries in Western […]
Hunger, disease and poverty continue to extract a painful toll throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Large percentages in the 10 African countries surveyed say there have been times in the past year they have been unable to afford food, clothing and medical care. And fewer than four-in-ten in every African country surveyed say they are very satisfied […]
Muslim publics around the world increasingly reject suicide bombing and other forms of violence against civilian targets in the defense of Islam. Overall, majorities in 15 of 16 Muslim publics surveyed say that suicide bombings can be rarely or never justified. Fully 77% of Muslims in Indonesia – and nearly as many in Bangladesh, Pakistan […]
People around the world often mention neighboring nations as posing the greatest threats to their own countries. Proximity also is a factor in peoples’ views of their country’s most dependable allies. However, world powers often make the list – and the United States appears prominently on the lists of major allies and threats. In fact, […]
