United States President Donald Trump is significantly more unpopular in Australia than Chinese President Xi Jinping, with almost half the public considering the US an equally big or bigger threat than China.
As well as being personally unpopular, Trump’s volatile first year back in office, which has included imposing tariffs on key allies and a harsh crackdown on unauthorised immigration, has caused broader perceptions of the US to plummet in Australia.
The latest Resolve survey also found a decisive majority of Australians regard Taiwan as a sovereign nation – rather than a region of China as Beijing claims – but the public is evenly split on whether Australia should support the self-governing island if China tries to seize it by force.
With the war in Ukraine about to enter its fifth year, most Australians want the government to continue or increase its current levels of assistance to Ukraine. But the strength of Australians’ support for Ukraine has declined as the conflict has dragged on.
The poll, conducted for this masthead, found that Trump has a net favorability rating of minus 41, his worst result since he returned to the White House in January last year.
Xi has a favorability rating of minus 26, while Russian President Vladimir Putin is Australians’ least favourite world leader, with a favorability rating of minus 60.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky remains Australians’ favourite world leader, with a net favorability rating of plus 22. The only other foreign leaders with positive ratings among those polled were Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (+4) and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (+1).
The poll, with a sample size of 1800 respondents, found Australians share Britons’ lack of enthusiasm for UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who received a minus 5 favorability rating.
This compares to scores of negative 12 percentage points for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and plus 3 for Angus Taylor in the most recent survey, which used the same ratings scale for domestic and foreign politicians.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allen had a rating of minus 36, making her less popular than Xi in her state, while Liberal leader Jess Wilson scored a rating of plus 14. NSW Premier Chris Minns’ rating was at plus 25 in January.
Trump’s return to office has clearly damaged America’s overall reputation, with its net favorability rating plunging into negative territory (-17), only slightly better than China at minus 24.
The US’s favorability rating has skydived by 21 percentage points since October and by 34 points from two years ago, when most Australians had a positive impression of America.
Australians hold far more positive views of New Zealand (+67), Japan (+53) and the United Kingdom (+41).
Pollster Jim Reed said: “The US is now rated negatively, but it’s nowhere near Trump.
“Our read is that the man is dragging down the country, and that Australians hold out some hope that their ally will return to expected norms in the years to come.”
He pointed out the dramatic improvement in Australian perceptions of Japan over recent decades, which is now viewed more positively than the UK.
Asked to name the biggest threat to Australia in the next few years, 31 per cent identified China, down from 54 per cent in January 2023.
Seventeen per cent of Australians said they regard the US as its biggest threat – despite the nations sharing a longstanding security alliance – while five per cent regard Russia as the biggest threat.
Thirty-one per cent said they regard China, the US and Russia as equal threats, while 16 per cent were undecided or did not have an opinion.
The poll found that 62 per cent of Australians regard Taiwan as a sovereign nation, while just 11 per cent regard it as a region of China.
Taiwan has never been controlled by the Chinese Communist Party, runs democratic elections, issues its own passports and uses its own currency. But most nations around the world, including Australia, do not recognise it as a nation state.
Beijing regards Taiwan as an integral part of its territory and has vowed to reunify the mainland with the island.
China’s ambassador to Australia, Xiao Qian argued in January that “Taiwan is a province of China, just as Tasmania is a state of Australia”.
Asked how Australia should respond if Xi moves to take control of the island, 38 per cent of Australians said they did not want to take sides, while 36 per cent said Australia should show support for Taiwan’s defence.
Just 7 per cent of respondents said Australia should show support for China and its claims over the island.
Asked about the conflict in Ukraine, 45 per cent of respondents say Australia should support Ukraine, while 39 per cent say Australia should not take sides in the conflict.
On Australian military and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine, 16 per cent of respondents say Australia should increase its level of support, down from 25 per cent in March 2025 and 31 per cent in October 2022.
Twenty-one per cent say Australia should decrease or withdraw support for Ukraine, up from 14 per cent last March and 9 per cent in October 2022.
“The level of support for Ukraine is quite resilient over four long years of conflict,” Reed said.
Forty per cent say they want Australia to maintain current levels of support to Ukraine.
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Matthew Knott is the foreign affairs and national security correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via X, Facebook or email.