Nearly 80 Percent of Canadians View China Negatively, Survey Shows

China is seen in a negative light in 24 countries surveyed

A Chinese flag is seen among Canadian flags in the Hall of Honour on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Sept. 22, 2016. Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press

Nearly 80 percent of Canadians hold a negative view of China due to its malign foreign policy, a recent survey found; this negative perception of the communist regime is shared across 24 countries where the same survey was conducted.

A total of 79 percent of Canadians hold an unfavourable opinion of China, an increase of 5 percent from 2022, according to a Pew Research Center survey, published on July 27. Only 14 percent of Canadians see China as favourable or somewhat favourable.

“Views of China are broadly negative across 24 countries,” researchers said in the report. A median of 67 percent of adults show unfavourable views of the country, while 28 percent have a favourable opinion.

Japan and Australia have the highest unfavourable views of China at 87 percent, followed by Sweden (85 percent) and the United States (83 percent). Middle-income countries, except India, hold more positive attitudes toward China.

“Fewer in these middle-income countries also criticize China’s global behavior, and many more see China’s ’soft power' appeal. Indeed, the public in these middle-income countries offers relatively favorable ratings for China’s entertainment products, its universities and its standard of living—while few in most high-income countries agree,” researchers said.

The survey highlights a widespread belief that the Chinese regime “does not contribute to global peace and stability,” with a median 71 percent of all respondents holding such views. Additionally, 76 percent believe that China does not consider the interests of other countries in its foreign policy, and 57 percent believe it interferes in the affairs of other nations to a great deal or a fair amount.

A series of news reports over the past year have revealed Beijing’s heavy interference in Canada, including the meddling in two federal elections, the operation of secret police stations on Canadian soil, and the deployment of surveillance balloons across North America and spy buoys in Arctic waters.

The Pew survey revealed that the perception of China as the world’s leading economic power has faltered in recent years. A median of 42 percent of respondents now name the United States as the world’s top economic power, surpassing China (33 percent) by nearly 10 percent. This shift is particularly significant in high-income countries, where the percentage of those naming China has declined in almost every surveyed country—including double-digit drops in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, and Sweden.

The country most likely to see China interfering in the affairs of other countries in this year’s survey is Italy (82 percent). Researchers noted that Italy, which was the only G7 country to join China’s Belt and Road Initiative, was debating leaving the infrastructure scheme at the time the survey was conducted.

The surveys were conducted by phone between Feb. 20 and May 22, with more than 30,000 adults.