The majority of citizens in developed countries view China as an increasingly serious threat. In fact, 68% of citizens view China in a negative light according to the annual opinion survey from the Pew Research Center in Washington, D.C., released on Wednesday, June 29. The 2022 edition was conducted through interviews with 20,944 adults in Europe, Canada, Israel and Asia from February 14 to June 3, and with 3,581 people in the United States from March 21 to 27.
China's unfavorable image is rooted in these regions of the world for two main reasons: its human rights abuses and its military expansion. Its economic power and its influence on the internal politics of governments are also a concern, but to a lesser extent.
In 10 of the 19 countries surveyed, negative perceptions are therefore the highest they have been in 22 years, with 82% in the United States, 80% in South Korea, 74% in Germany, and 50% in Greece. The Pew Institute noted that South Korea "had been hit hard by the economic retaliation that followed its decision in 2017 to install U.S. THAAD anti-ballistic missile batteries. Negative views rose further during [the Covid outbreak]." These negative judgments also "increased by 21 points in Poland and Israel, and by 15 points in Hungary, countries last surveyed in 2019."
The personality of President Xi Jinping, who is preparing to retain power after the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) congress in November, is far from reassuring. Among those who do not trust him on a global scale, French citizens surveyed rank sixth, with 80% expressing distrust.
Hong Kong and the treatment of Uyghurs at the heart of the debate
"There has been a change in attitude towards China in my own country, Germany, which is much more critical," David McAllister, chairman of the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs, testified Tuesday, June 28, at a German Marshall Fund forum in Brussels. "Two events have shifted the public debate: Hong Kong, when the Chinese Communists crushed the liberal movement, showing that they are ideologically aggressive and capable of breaking their international commitments; and the scandalous reports from Xinjiang on the Chinese treatment of Uyghurs, which is one of the most severe and systematic acts of human rights abuse in recent decades."
However, the public believes that bilateral relations with Beijing remain good in most cases. The Pew Institute uses the Netherlands as an example. On the one hand, "75 percent of Dutch respondents have negative views of China, and the Netherlands – the first country in Europe to pass legislation calling the treatment of Uyghurs genocide – stands out for having the highest percentage of negative views [64%] calling China's policy on human rights a 'very serious problem'." But on the other hand, "65% of Dutch people believe their country's relations with China are currently satisfactory."
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