Bahk Eun-ji has been with The Korea Times since 2012, building a career across multiple desks. She began at the Business Desk, where she conducted in-depth interviews with key figures in Korea's corporate world. Later, she moved to the Politics & City Desk, focusing on education policy and social affairs. She later served as team leader of the digital content team, leading curation efforts on the newspaper’s homepage and reshaping print stories for social media audiences to enhance digital reach. Now back on the Politics Desk, she covers the National Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense, with a renewed focus on political developments.
6 in 10 globally hold negative view of US
U.S. President Donald Trump leaves the stage after speaking at a campaign rally with U.S. Sen. Darline Graham in Myrtle Beach, S.C., Aug. 21. AFP-Yonhap
By Bahk Eun-ji
Even in staunch ally Japan, positive, negative views evenly split
Negative views of the United States prevail in many countries in Europe and Asia, including some of Washington’s longtime allies, while Israel remains a notable exception, according to a Pew Research Center survey.
Across the 42,151 adults surveyed in 36 countries, a median of 37 percent had favorable views of the U.S., compared with 57 percent who viewed it unfavorably. Only seven countries had a majority with positive views of the U.S. during the time of the survey, which was conducted between Feb. 8 and May 13.
Views were particularly negative in Europe. In countries including France, Germany and the United Kingdom, positive ratings of the U.S. were at or near the lowest levels recorded in Pew surveys dating back to 2002.
Pew found that attitudes toward both the U.S. and President Donald Trump were more negative in Europe than in other regions.
The trend was also evident in Asia. In Korea, favorable views of the U.S. fell sharply from 61 percent in 2025 to 45 percent this year, while 55 percent now hold unfavorable views. It was the first time in more than two decades that a majority of Koreans expressed an unfavorable opinion of the U.S.
In Japan, views were evenly split, with 50 percent viewing the U.S. favorably and 50 percent unfavorably. The Philippines remained more positive, with 56 percent holding favorable views of the U.S., compared with 41 percent who expressed unfavorable views.
Canada, an economic and security partner of the U.S., with which it shares the world's longest unguarded border, has seen an even sharper erosion of trust, with the share of Canadians viewing it as a reliable partner plunging from 83 percent in 2022 to 35 percent earlier this year. The two neighboring countries are now locked in an escalating trade dispute, with Ottawa announcing retaliatory tariffs of up to 50 percent on about $20 billion worth of U.S. goods this week after Washington imposed new tariffs on Canadian imports.
Israel recorded the highest favorable rating among the countries surveyed, at 81 percent. The figure, however, masked a wide divide within Israel. While 96 percent of Jewish Israelis viewed the U.S. favorably, only 19 percent of Arab Israelis said the same.