Russia and US Least Popular G8 Countries Globally

According to a Gallup International survey published recently, former Cold War superpowers Russia and the United States are the least popular G-8 countries. The Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat reported on the survey, saying less than one third of people (31%) have a positive view of Russia. Next on the list was the US with just four in ten of respondents indicating a positive view. In Western Europe, only one in five people see Russia in a positive light. Russia has a particularly bad image in Kosovo and Finland with 73 and 62 percent of people saying they had a "very negative" or "fairly negative" view of Russia. In the Baltic States, Lithuanians gave Russia better marks: 38 percent said that they had a positive attitude. In Latvia and Estonia, the corresponding figures were 36 and 34 percent. Only two percent in India and Argentina had a very positive view of the USA, while in France just three percent said that they had a very positive view of the United States. The study interviewed more than 50,000 people in 60 countries and focused on global attitudes toward the members of the G8 group of industrialized countries.

The G8 brings together heads of state or government from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the USA and the UK. The President of the European Commission also attends G8 meetings. The UK will take over the Presidency of the G8 on Jan. 1, 2005. (EUobserver.com)