Pew: Russia Coldest, Canada Warmest in US G20 Ratings — SkimNews
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- Pew Research Center asked Americans to rate 18 G20 member countries on a 0–100 'feeling thermometer' ahead of the U.S.-hosted G20 summit in December, with warmest ratings going to Australia, Canada, Japan and Italy (mid-to-high 60s).
- Russia received the coldest average rating at 27, with 51% of Americans giving it a 'very cold' score (0–24) and 23% assigning it a literal zero — significantly more negative than China (37 average) or Saudi Arabia (36).
- Democrats rate most G20 countries more warmly than Republicans, with the widest partisan gaps appearing on neighbors Canada and Mexico (Democrats' mean scores 19 and 18 points higher, respectively); Russia is the sole country Republicans feel warmer toward than Democrats.
- Views of Japan warmed from a 57 average in 2016 to 65 today, with the share of Americans giving Japan a warm rating rising from 44% to 65% across all age groups and partisan lines.
- Views of Canada have cooled slightly from a 71 average in 2018 to 67 today, driven almost entirely by older Republicans, whose warm ratings fell from 61% to 47% over that period while Democrats' views held steady.
- Views of China recovered from a relative low of 28 in 2021 to 37 today, though a majority of Americans still hold a negative opinion and adults 50 and older are 15 points more likely than younger adults to give China a very cold rating.
- India's average rating slipped from 51 in 2018 to 46 today, reflecting fewer neutral views and more negative ones, even as adults 50 and older remain the only age group that rates India more warmly than younger Americans.
- Views of the UK dropped from a 66 average in 2016 to 60 today, with Republican warm views collapsing from 67% to 45% — reversing the partisan gap, since Republicans once rated the UK more positively than Democrats.
Why it matters: The U.S. hosts the G20 in December, and these ratings map the diplomatic terrain: Canada (67) and Mexico (55) remain broadly popular but show partisan cracks, while Russia at 27 — with 51% very cold — signals virtually no public goodwill as the war in Ukraine grinds on. The 19-point Democratic-Republican gap on Canada, driven by older Republicans, could constrain how aggressively the administration frames hemispheric cooperation.
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