“The world has grown weary of Washington’s reckless and often unilateral imperialist actions,” wrote Foreign Policy magazine following the recent U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Recent international public opinion polls have supported this view, showing a significant decline in global perceptions of the United States. Favorability ratings have dropped sharply, especially among America’s traditional allies and neighboring countries.
Experts believe the sharp decline in the U.S.’s international reputation reflects widespread dissatisfaction with the Trump administration’s “America First” policy and its hegemonic, bullying behavior. “The whole world is watching the U.S. destroy its own reputation,” said Jeff Robbins, former U.S. representative to the United Nations Human Rights Council.
Global Favorability Toward the U.S. Plummets
Multiple international polls show that since the Trump administration took office earlier this year, global perceptions of the United States have steadily worsened. The decline has been especially sharp among America’s neighbors and allies, including Mexico, Canada, and EU member states.
A recent survey by the Pew Research Center found that in 19 out of the 24 countries polled, over half of respondents said they had “little or no confidence” in the Trump administration’s ability to handle major international issues such as the global economy, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and climate change. Distrust was highest in Mexico, where 91% of respondents expressed a lack of confidence in the U.S., followed by Sweden, Germany, and Spain—each with over 80% expressing similar views.
According to the latest poll by Morning Consult, the U.S.’s global net favorability score plummeted from over +20 at the beginning of 2024 to -1.5 by the end of May—its first drop into negative territory since January 2022. The survey revealed that public favorability toward the U.S. declined in 38 out of 41 countries. The global image of the U.S. took a further hit after the Trump administration’s April announcement of so-called “reciprocal tariffs.”
A report released in May by polling agency Nila Data showed that the United States’ net favorability score across 100 countries and regions dropped from +22 in 2024 to -5. Populations in Canada, Mexico, and most European countries now hold predominantly negative views of the U.S.
Steve Dunn, a political science researcher at the University of Warwick, said that more and more countries around the world are quickly realizing that the U.S. and the Trump administration are not trustworthy. David Duda, CEO of Strategic Pathways Consulting, noted that several Trump administration policies have made the U.S. seem like an “unrealistic and unreliable partner.”
“America’s word means nothing now”
Experts point out that since taking office, the Trump administration has repeatedly shown hostility toward other countries on issues like immigration, diplomacy, trade, and global governance—leading to a sharp decline in global trust and identification with the U.S. Charles Dunn, a senior fellow at the Arab Center in Washington, said the aggressiveness and depth of the “America First” policy has been shocking, and has severely damaged America’s credibility.
The administration’s pattern of withdrawing from international agreements, breaking commitments, and triggering global “tariff wars” has laid bare its selfishness and bullying tactics. Behind this behavior is a broader abandonment of the U.S.’s international responsibilities under the banner of “America First.” As U.S. scholars like Noam Chomsky and Robert Kagan have described it, America has become a “rogue superpower.”
From claiming the U.S. was “very close” to a deal with Iran to suddenly launching airstrikes, the Trump administration has flip-flopped on the Iran nuclear issue. Mutually beneficial international cooperation is now framed as “every trade partner exploiting the U.S.” International public goods are dismissed as a raw deal for America. The Paris Agreement, in Trump’s words, cost the U.S. “trillions of dollars.”
Jason Furman, a professor of economics at Harvard University, bluntly stated, “America is now an extremely unreliable partner for anyone in the world.” Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz warned that the Trump administration’s transactional approach to issues like the Russia-Ukraine conflict and global trade will permanently damage U.S. credibility: “Today, America’s word means nothing.”
Politico Europe reported that U.S. officials have called the EU “terrible,” “pathetic,” and accused it of being created to “rip off the United States.” Such rhetoric has severely damaged America’s reputation across EU countries. The U.S. has also pressured NATO members to increase military spending and even made overt territorial claims toward allies like Canada and Denmark. Nikkei commented that the true “cold and ruthless” nature of U.S. foreign policy is becoming increasingly clear. Ben Rhodes, former Deputy National Security Advisor to President Obama, said the Trump administration’s view of international relations as akin to extorting protection money has drained global trust in the U.S.
A World Moving Past America
As America’s global image crumbles, its influence is fading just as fast. Huang Yanzhong, a professor at Seton Hall University’s School of Diplomacy and International Relations, noted that the Trump administration’s “short-sighted transactionalism” and combative “America First” ideology are accelerating the decline of U.S. power abroad.
American media outlets agree that the administration’s repeated abandonment of international commitments is eroding its image as a global leader. The world is increasingly realizing that the U.S. neither has the will nor the capacity to address shared global challenges.
Ties between the U.S. and its Western allies have also frayed. Divisions within the G7, led by the U.S., are growing deeper, making consensus harder to achieve. The June G7 summit broke tradition by failing to issue a joint communiqué for the first time in years. Bloomberg noted that “America First” is undermining the foundation of the G7, dragging down its global relevance. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, host of the summit, admitted that even among America’s closest Western allies, its role as a global leader is “a thing of the past.”
As Spain’s La Vanguardia put it, the United States is increasingly seen by the rest of the world as “an unpredictable, overbearing, and unstable partner.” Former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt wrote that the world is “entering an era where the United States is no longer as important.”
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