National flags of Korea, left, and the United StatesAP/YONHAP
For the first time in twenty years of Pew surveys, a majority of Koreans hold a negative view of the United States, driven by falling confidence in the U.S. government and widespread pushback against U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff measures.
A total of 55 percent of Korean adults surveyed said their view of the United States was “unfavorable,” up 16 percentage points from 39 percent last year, according to a survey released Monday by the Pew Research Center — a U.S. nonprofit research and polling organization.
The survey was conducted from March 3 to April 4 among 1,045 Korean adults.
It was the first time a majority of Korean respondents expressed an unfavorable view of the United States since Pew began tracking such sentiment in Korea, about two decades ago.
The share of respondents who viewed the United States "very unfavorable" doubled to 18 percent from 9 percent last year. Meanwhile, 45 percent responded they had a “favorable” view toward the United States, down 16 percentage points from last year.
The only previous year in which unfavorable views of the United States outnumbered favorable was 2003, when 50 percent viewed the country unfavorably compared to 46 percent who viewed it favorably.
At the time, anti-U.S. sentiment had grown following the 2002 Yangju highway incident, in which Korean middle school students Shin Hyo-sun and Shim Mi-seon were fatally crushed by a U.S. military armored vehicle during a training exercise.
Trust in the United States also fell sharply.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as he hosts a back-to-school-themed event to highlight his administration's education policies, in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, D.C., on August 24.REUTERS/YONHAP
A total of 57 percent of Korean respondents answered the United States as a "reliable partner," down 26 percentage points from 83 percent in 2022 — when the same question was last asked during the Joe Biden administration.
The share of Koreans who responded that the United States contributes "a great deal" or "a fair amount" to global peace and stability fell to 47 percent from 74 percent in 2023, a decline of 27 percentage points.
Koreans also expressed widespread opposition to Trump's tariff policies, with 85 percent viewing them negatively. Of those surveyed, 63 percent “strongly” opposed the policies, while 14 percent supported them.
The United States, however, retained its standing as Korea's most important ally. A total of 84 percent of Koreans viewed the country as such, down 5 percentage points from last year but still representing a large majority.
In a survey of 24 countries last year, Korea had the second-highest share of respondents naming the United States as their country's most important ally, behind only Israel.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
