The Pew Research Center’s latest global survey, conducted between February and May 2026 among 42,151 respondents in 36 countries, shows that a median of just 23 per cent express confidence in President Donald Trump to “do the right thing” in world affairs. Simultaneously, favourable views of the United States have fallen to 37 per cent, while half of those polled now consider Washington an unreliable partner. The fieldwork took place after the US and Israel launched military operations against Iran on 28 February, a context that researchers say may have hardened perceptions.

The distrust is most pronounced among traditional allies. In ten European countries surveyed, no majority trusts Trump; in seven of them, disapproval exceeds 75 per cent. Germany and France register 84 per cent expressing no confidence, Sweden 89 per cent, and support has dropped by 15 percentage points in Greece and Italy since 2025. In the Asia-Pacific, Australia’s unfavourable view of the US reaches 76 per cent, and only 18 per cent trust Trump. Canada, where 83 per cent saw the US as a reliable partner in 2022, now records 35 per cent. By contrast, Israel (81 per cent favourable view of the US) and the Philippines (68 per cent confidence in Trump) are among the few outliers, alongside Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana.

The erosion extends to specific policy areas. Across the 36 nations, 77 per cent disapprove of Trump’s handling of tariffs, 74 per cent of his Iran policy, and similar majorities reject his approach to the Gaza conflict, Ukraine and the demand for Greenland. Only 35 per cent believe the US contributes to international peace and stability, and 32 per cent think it takes other countries’ interests into account. The share of respondents who view the US as respecting personal freedoms stands at 39 per cent. In the ranking of world leaders, Trump’s median confidence rating falls below those of Emmanuel Macron, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin; only Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu scores lower, at 18 per cent.

The findings arrive as domestic US approval ratings also slide. The American Research Group puts Trump’s job approval at 30 per cent, while the AP-NORC survey records 37 per cent. In Italy, a separate Demopolis poll shows Italian trust in Trump collapsing from 42 per cent at his inauguration to 11 per cent, even as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s own rating rose after a public clash with the US president. In European capitals, diplomats view the numbers as a reflection of cumulative friction over tariffs, the Greenland demand, and what they describe as a unilateral approach to Iran and Ukraine. The survey does not prescribe policy steps, but it provides a quantitative baseline for governments reassessing their engagement with Washington.