Gallup and Meridian International on April 10th released their fifth annual report on how U.S. leadership is perceived around the world at the Gallup Building in Washington, DC. The U.S. received the highest global approval ratings out of five global powers, including Germany, China, the European Union, and Russia.
While approval ratings varied from region to region, the median rose to 46 percent in 2013 from a low of 41 percent in 2012.
Four out of the 17 countries worldwide where approval ratings saw double-digit increases in 2013 were in Asia: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Pakistan.
The results were based on face-to-face and telephone interviews with approximately 1000 adults, age 15 and older, conducted throughout 2012 and 2013 in 130 countries.
Some survey samplings were taken before the Snowden leaks, which scholars believe has influenced global opinion, particularly in Russia and Germany. Nonetheless, Gallup stressed that the survey accurately reflects world opinion during the first year of President Obama’s second term in office.
Governor James J. Blanchard, Chairman of Meridian Board of Trustees, delivered the introductory remarks. Jon Clifton, Managing Director of Gallup World Poll, presented survey data, explaining that polls were conducted in both major urban areas and less developed rural areas.
Africa continued to show the strongest approval of U.S. leadership. However, in three northern African countries—Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt—fewer than one in four people saw the U.S. in a positive light. Overall, approval in Africa dropped from 70 percent in 2012 to 64 percent in 2013. Analysts speculate that this decline was the result of less attention being paid to that continent. Still, nine of the top 10 countries surveyed were in Africa, including Guinea, Cameroon, and Mauritania. The only non-African country among the top 10 was Kosovo. The countries where there was the highest disapproval ratings were in the Middle East and South Asia.
The presentation was followed by a panel discussion on “What the World Thinks about U.S. Leadership,” moderated by Ambassador Stuart Holliday, President and CEO of Meridian. The panelists were H.E. Adebowle Ibidapo Adefuye, Ambassador of Nigeria to the U.S.; Ambassador James K. Glassman, Chairman and CEO of Public Affairs Engagement; and H.E. Igor Munteau, Ambassador of Moldova to the U.S.
The country representatives helped explain the findings. Nigeria, for example, like other African countries, showed a high approval rate (60 percent), but Ambassador Adefuye suggested that a 17 percent decline from the previous year was the result of Obama’s neglect of his country. Moldova registered 42 percent, a four percent increase from the previous year, which Ambassador Munteau said was due to rising public diplomacy among young people.
Ambassador Glassman pointed out that the poll tends to reflect people’s impression of the U.S. as a whole, making it difficult to assess the participants’ evaluation of U.S. leadership alone. He suggested that approval ratings could be improved if the U.S. were to demonstrate more respect for other nations. “There are three reasons why people often don’t like the U.S. around the world,” Glassman said, “The first is they don’t understand our politics; second is they don’t understand our policies; and third is they feel the U.S. is not showing respect to them.”
Holliday said that students in the U.S. should learn more about the rest of the world in order to support their country’s leadership role. The conclusion was that the U.S. faces more challenges in 2014 in enhancing perception of its leadership around the world. The mains challenges include its response to Russia, together with its NATO partners, as well as its ongoing attempts to rebalance power in the Asia-Pacific.
Read the complete findings from the U.S.-Global Leadership Project here.
Photo courtesy of Meridian International Center.
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Global Perceptions of U.S. Leadership Improve in 2013
April 17, 2014
Gallup and Meridian International on April 10th released their fifth annual report on how U.S. leadership is perceived around the world at the Gallup Building in Washington, DC. The U.S. received the highest global approval ratings out of five global powers, including Germany, China, the European Union, and Russia.
While approval ratings varied from region to region, the median rose to 46 percent in 2013 from a low of 41 percent in 2012.
Four out of the 17 countries worldwide where approval ratings saw double-digit increases in 2013 were in Asia: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Pakistan.
The results were based on face-to-face and telephone interviews with approximately 1000 adults, age 15 and older, conducted throughout 2012 and 2013 in 130 countries.
Some survey samplings were taken before the Snowden leaks, which scholars believe has influenced global opinion, particularly in Russia and Germany. Nonetheless, Gallup stressed that the survey accurately reflects world opinion during the first year of President Obama’s second term in office.
Governor James J. Blanchard, Chairman of Meridian Board of Trustees, delivered the introductory remarks. Jon Clifton, Managing Director of Gallup World Poll, presented survey data, explaining that polls were conducted in both major urban areas and less developed rural areas.
Africa continued to show the strongest approval of U.S. leadership. However, in three northern African countries—Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt—fewer than one in four people saw the U.S. in a positive light. Overall, approval in Africa dropped from 70 percent in 2012 to 64 percent in 2013. Analysts speculate that this decline was the result of less attention being paid to that continent. Still, nine of the top 10 countries surveyed were in Africa, including Guinea, Cameroon, and Mauritania. The only non-African country among the top 10 was Kosovo. The countries where there was the highest disapproval ratings were in the Middle East and South Asia.
The presentation was followed by a panel discussion on “What the World Thinks about U.S. Leadership,” moderated by Ambassador Stuart Holliday, President and CEO of Meridian. The panelists were H.E. Adebowle Ibidapo Adefuye, Ambassador of Nigeria to the U.S.; Ambassador James K. Glassman, Chairman and CEO of Public Affairs Engagement; and H.E. Igor Munteau, Ambassador of Moldova to the U.S.
The country representatives helped explain the findings. Nigeria, for example, like other African countries, showed a high approval rate (60 percent), but Ambassador Adefuye suggested that a 17 percent decline from the previous year was the result of Obama’s neglect of his country. Moldova registered 42 percent, a four percent increase from the previous year, which Ambassador Munteau said was due to rising public diplomacy among young people.
Ambassador Glassman pointed out that the poll tends to reflect people’s impression of the U.S. as a whole, making it difficult to assess the participants’ evaluation of U.S. leadership alone. He suggested that approval ratings could be improved if the U.S. were to demonstrate more respect for other nations. “There are three reasons why people often don’t like the U.S. around the world,” Glassman said, “The first is they don’t understand our politics; second is they don’t understand our policies; and third is they feel the U.S. is not showing respect to them.”
Holliday said that students in the U.S. should learn more about the rest of the world in order to support their country’s leadership role. The conclusion was that the U.S. faces more challenges in 2014 in enhancing perception of its leadership around the world. The mains challenges include its response to Russia, together with its NATO partners, as well as its ongoing attempts to rebalance power in the Asia-Pacific.
Read the complete findings from the U.S.-Global Leadership Project here.
Photo courtesy of Meridian International Center.
