This article is part of a series on global leadership approval ratings. Read more on EU approval among member states and on Ukraine and Russia approval in their wider region.
LONDON — Washington’s image among NATO allies weakened in 2025, with median approval falling 14 percentage points to 21% across 31 countries.
The low level of support for U.S. leadership is similar to what Gallup found during President Donald Trump’s first term and in 2007-2008 under President George W. Bush.
Washington’s image has fluctuated significantly over time among NATO member states, in line with different administrations. Under President Barack Obama, a median of 45% across NATO approved of the United States’ leadership. This fell to an average of 22% over President Donald Trump’s first term in office, and recovered somewhat under President Joe Biden, averaging 39%.
Compared with 2024, U.S. leadership approval has fallen most in Germany (-39 points) and Portugal (-38 points), with 16 other countries showing declines of at least 10 points. Türkiye was the only NATO country where U.S. approval increased by double digits (12 points).
Poland (68%) and Albania (64%) are the only NATO countries where a majority of residents approved of Washington in 2025, whereas approval ratings dipped to roughly one in 10 across Nordic countries, including Sweden (9%), Iceland (9%) and Norway (10%).
The latest results are based on surveys conducted in 31 NATO member states between March and October 2025. They predate recent U.S. military action in Venezuela, after which Trump has reiterated his desire to seize the territory of Greenland from Denmark, a NATO ally, raising tensions within the alliance. In response, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned that a U.S. military takeover of Greenland would result in the end of the NATO alliance.
EU, Germany, More Liked by NATO Members
The European Union and Germany receive significantly higher leadership approval ratings than the U.S. among NATO countries. A median of 60% approved of EU leadership in 2025, down slightly from a record 65% in 2023. Germany's leadership earns 54% approval, consistent with recent years. Under the Obama presidency, approval of the U.S. was mostly in line with the EU and slightly lower than Germany. But under Biden, the average gaps widened considerably.
Washington and Beijing now receive similar approval ratings across NATO, as they did during Trump’s first term, with median approval of China’s leadership rising eight points in 2025 to 22%. Although Beijing marked its largest single-year gain in approval among alliance members on record last year, it remains largely unpopular among NATO country residents — as it has been throughout the past two decades, even as views of the U.S. have shifted.
The U.S. is now closer to Russia in leadership approval among NATO residents than it is to the EU or Germany, albeit with ratings 10 points higher than Russia’s. Median approval of Moscow remains low at 10%, after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and only marginally higher than the trend-low 6% that year.
Not a Zero-Sum Game Between U.S., China in NATO
Washington’s losses have not directly translated into Beijing’s gains. Although approval of U.S. leadership declined by at least 10 points in 18 NATO member states in 2025, in only three of these — Spain, Italy and Belgium — did China see double-digit increases in approval. In most others, China’s approval rating rose modestly or held steady.
Similarly, in several other countries where China saw significant gains, including Slovenia, Greece, Hungary, and Türkiye, approval of U.S. leadership also improved or was at least steady.
China Leads U.S. in More NATO Countries
Although the U.S. and China have similar median approval ratings across NATO, China has significantly higher ratings than the U.S. in eight member states, whereas the U.S. leads China in three.
- Beijing has an approval lead of at least 10 points over Washington in Slovenia, Luxembourg, Türkiye, Bulgaria, Spain, Montenegro, Iceland and Greece.
- The U.S. enjoys higher approval than China in Poland, Albania and Romania.
- The remaining 20 member states give Washington and Beijing statistically similar ratings.
This represents a shift from 2020, the final year of Trump's first term, when median approval of both powers also stood equal at 18%, and the U.S. had higher approval ratings in five countries compared with China's three.
Implications
Gallup’s latest data show that U.S. approval tumbled by 14 points across NATO in 2025. As a result, public support for U.S. and Chinese leadership is once again on par, which is a return to the norm under previous Republican administrations. Approval of Russia remains lower still, while the EU and Germany are the only powers to receive majority approval within NATO.
The past three years have tested NATO's unity. China has risen on the alliance's security agenda as U.S.-China relations have deteriorated, and as Beijing has given support to Russia over its war in Ukraine. China's infrastructure investments across Southern and Central Europe and the Balkans have also expanded its influence within NATO.
At the same time, U.S. statements questioning the defense commitments of allies that fall short on military spending have raised concerns within NATO. While the alliance has since agreed to raise its spending target to 5% of GDP after pressure from the U.S., recent discussions involving Greenland have renewed tensions among the allies.
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