Given the aggressiveness and constant lurches of Donald Trump in his second term in the White House, his southern neighbors are increasingly looking more favorably at China, the great strategic rival of the United States. The Asian giant is the only one of the powers that gains prestige among Latin Americans, according to a survey conducted by the German foundation Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, the magazine Nueva Sociedad, and the group Diálogo y Paz, and released this week. China gains new followers in the region (6 points more) while the positive image of the US plummets (17 points less) and that of Europe declines, dragged down by Germany and France. 12,000 respondents participated in 10 countries.
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Titled AMLAT Radar 2026 or Navigating Uncertainty: Latin American Perspectives on Europe and the World, the survey is a snapshot of this moment marked by global disorder and extreme uncertainty. It portrays the mood of ten countries —Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, Uruguay, and Venezuela— regarding the current world. But it also allows for an appreciation of the evolution in recent years. Because it is the second iteration of the one conducted in 2021-2022.
The authors highlight that, of the seven best-evaluated powers/countries, China is the only one whose reputation has improved in this four-year period. The rest lose followers. The analysis adds that “the leading countries of the Western world thus face a problem of decreasing reputation in the region, although they still top the list.” Spain leads with almost 31% positive mentions, followed by less than a point by the United States and Germany. But the trend is clear. Its popularity at this moment is in clear decline.
Browsing TikTok, shopping on Shein, and getting into or driving a BYD electric car is becoming increasingly common for millions of citizens in Latin America. In the last two decades, China has increased its presence to become South America’s leading trade partner, while the US maintains that position in Mexico or Colombia.
China is again the most frequent answer (36%) to the question of which country can serve as the best model for their country’s development. It is followed by Japan (31%) and almost tied with the United States. The authors highlight Venezuela’s unique result, where the Chinese and American models appear practically tied. The surveys were conducted before Trump decapitated Chavismo in a military attack and before he, along with Israel, became embroiled in a war against Iran.
The authors of AMLAT Radar 2026 point out that Latin Americans do not consider China a threat but “as a pragmatic option associated with the value assigned to education, science, and technology.”
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The United States is seen, above all, as a military and economic power. The damage to Washington’s reputation “reflects the costs derived from the untimely and aggressive turn of the Trump administration to impose the American sphere of influence,” the report says. A move that translates into the current American tutelage over Venezuela, interference to ensure its candidate won elections (the case of Argentina or Honduras) or to prevent an ally like Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro from being judged, the use of military force to pulverize alleged drug boats, or the inclusion of drug trafficking mafias on the US list of terrorist organizations.
Latin Americans’ perception of Europe is that it has gradually distanced itself from the America that speaks Spanish or Portuguese. Although it maintains some recognition, it has “an image associated with the past, without dynamism or a clear or innovative role towards the future.” This view comes after a few years in which Europe has dealt with the first war on its territory in decades, that of Ukraine. But also the moment when, finally, the European Union and Mercosur have created one of the largest free trade areas in the world, which comes into effect in a few days.
The authors draw attention to the low appreciation among Mexicans for the neighboring United States, three times less than that expressed for the Asian superpower. In contrast, in the other Latin American giant, Brazil, the opinion is the inverse.
In nine of the ten countries analyzed, the impact of Trump’s policies is considered negative, an opinion especially intense in Mexico. The exception is Venezuela, where the effect is perceived as slightly positive. Asked about the leader they trust least, Trump leads in distrust (25%), followed by Russia’s Vladimir Putin (12%), Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro (5%), and almost tied, China’s Xi Jinping.
Some findings also stand out as emblematic. This is the case of Brazil, where a highly visible diplomacy coexists with the society that expresses the most doubts about its country’s foreign policy. Chileans stand out for their rejection of immigration, a factor that contributed to the electoral victory of the ultraconservative José Antonio Kast. And Mexicans and Chileans are the most reluctant for the United States to treat the region as its backyard, an opinion that probably underpins, according to the survey analysis, the high popularity ratings of presidents Claudia Sheinbaum and Gustavo Petro.