Russian President Vladimir Putin’s global ratings have sunk to 20-year lows as the Russia invasion of Ukraines enters its fourth month, according to a Pew Research Center poll published Wednesday.
A median of 9% of respondents in 18 countries said they have confidence in Putin “to do the right thing regarding world affairs,” Pew said.
That compares with 18% confidence in Chinese leader Xi Jinping and 60% for U.S. President Joe Biden and 59% German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Putin's worldwide approval has been on a downward trend during his two decades in power.
“But in 2022, these numbers reached record lows in every nation where trends are available,” Pew said.
Putin saw a significant drop in popularity among right-wing respondents who have traditionally seen the Russian leader more favorably.
The falling confidence in Putin has correlated with negative views of Russia itself, the survey’s results showed.
A median of 85% of Pew’s respondents said they have an unfavorable opinion of Russia.
Poland had both the most negative view of Russia — with 97% of Polish respondents saying they have a “very unfavorable” opinion of the country — and the lowest confidence in Putin at 2%, according to Pew.
The only country where a majority of respondents expressed confidence in Putin and favorability toward Russia was Malaysia.
Pew conducted its survey among 3,581 panelists in North America, Europe and the Pacific region March 21 through March 27.
