US falls below Russia in survey of global perceptions
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The global perception of the United States has fallen for a third consecutive year, now ranking several spots behind Russia, a survey commissioned by the Alliance of Democracies Foundations revealed on May 7.
The findings, conducted by polling firm Nira Data, come as the policies of U.S. President Donald Trump continue to strain relations between allies, including Ukraine.
The survey, which is based on the responses of over 46,000 people in 85 countries, found that the United States ranked 128th of the 132 countries and international institutions surveyed, just behind Russia, which placed 126th.
Respectively, the United States had a -16 global net perception score, while Russia held a -11 score, on a scale that measured perception from −100 to +100, with negative scores indicating unfavorable views.
In contrast, Ukraine held a positive global perception score, finishing with +9 in 62nd place among countries surveyed, far behind its Western allies Switzerland and Canada, which tied at the top with a score of +36.
Since the start of his second term, Trump has redefined U.S. foreign policy, having questioned his country's commitment to NATO's collective defense principles while threatening to annex NATO territory in Greenland.
Similarly, despite months of negotiations in an attempt to broker a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, the war in Ukraine has also dropped in priority as the U.S. wages war with Iran.
Kyiv has recently expressed its frustration amid efforts to restart U.S.-led negotiations. President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed dissatisfaction that Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have avoided traveling to Ukraine, as Kyiv grows restless with the U.S. strategy to end the war.
Global perceptions of the U.S. have fallen significantly in the last two years of surveys, dropping a total of 38 points from what was once a positive perception in 2024 at +22. The United States' perception score continued to drop over the last year, falling by 10 points from -6.
In 2026, only 22 of the 84 countries that evaluated the United States in the survey held a positive perception of the global power.
Israel, a close ally to the United States, finished in last place among surveyed countries with a perception score of -24, falling behind North Korea and Afghanistan at -19.
The survey, which was conducted online between March 19 and April 21, was weighted by age, gender, and education levels to match the country’s adult online population
