The Center for Central European Asian Studies (CEIAS) in Slovakia released a survey of European perceptions of China during the Wuhan pneumonia (CCP) Epidemic, which found that respondents in as many as 10 of the 13 countries had a generally negative view of China, while those who had a positive view of China were more likely to believe that the CCP deliberately created the virus to spread globally, with 62 percent of Poles blaming the epidemic on the CCP. In the Czech Republic, 51 percent of respondents see the CCP as a threat, while only Serbia, Russia, Latvia, Italy and Poland have a positive view of the Belt and Road Initiative.
According to the survey “European Perceptions of China during the Wuhan Pneumonia (COVID-19) Epidemic,” published by the Center for Central European Asian Studies (CEIAS) in Slovakia, respondents in up to 10 of the 13 countries generally viewed China more negatively than positively, and those who viewed China positively believed that the Chinese Communist Party deliberately created the virus to spread globally. A large number of respondents saw China helping in most countries during the outbreak, but few believed that China’s international reputation would improve.
Richard Turcsanyi, a researcher at the China-Europe Center for Asian Studies and one of the report’s authors, noted, “While some Europeans are aware of China’s help, the overall impact of the pandemic has been negative as the outbreak has spread from China. In addition, Chinese diplomacy has become more confrontational in the last year, and many European countries, including Sweden, France, the UK or the Czech Republic, have experienced some diplomatic tensions recently. In addition, the deterioration of the human rights situation in China, including in Xinjiang and Hong Kong, has further aggravated the negative and deteriorating image of China in most European countries.”
A large-scale public opinion survey on China conducted in 13 European countries in September and October 2020 showed that respondents in up to 10 of the 13 countries or regions had generally more negative than positive views of China; among them, Western and Northern European people for the most negative impressions of mainland China, Eastern European people had the most favorable views of the mainland, while Southern and Central Europe, although in the middle, had mostly negative impressions.
From a single country perspective, Sweden is the most disliked country in Europe, with nearly 70% of people holding negative or very negative views. Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic are also among the countries with more than 60 percent negative perceptions of China. Among the EU countries, only Latvia has a positive impression of China. Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic in the CEE group are generally viewed negatively, but more evenly.
As for how the respondents evaluate the changes in their perceptions of China over the past three years, the UK’s Perception of China has deteriorated the most, with more than two-thirds of respondents saying their perceptions of China have worsened, while other countries whose perceptions of China have significantly deteriorated include Sweden, France and Germany.
As to why their perception of China has seriously deteriorated, respondents mainly point to the mainland’s influence on the global environment and its interference in democracy in other countries. Trade with China is seen as positive by most, with the exception of France, the UK and Sweden, which have a slightly negative impression of trade with China. Most countries have a negative impression of the purpose of mainland investment, with only a few countries such as Serbia, Russia, Latvia and Poland holding a positive view.
The report shows that China’s soft power in Europe is very limited, and that respondents trust China significantly less than the EU, the US and Russia, and that the limitations of China’s soft power are once again evident. In the opinion of respondents from most countries, the EU and the US are by far the most trustworthy players. Only Russian and Serbian respondents trusted China more than the EU and the US.
The report also states that Chinese companies are the least preferred partners in the construction of 5G networks, especially in Sweden, the Czech Republic, the UK, France and Germany. In most countries, respondents strongly supported working with companies from the EU, followed by those from Japan and the US.
Regarding the origin of the virus, only in Sweden did more than half of the respondents agree that the virus was transmitted from animals to humans, with Germany, Latvia, Russia, France, Italy and the UK also agreeing with this scientific consensus. In other countries, however, more respondents believed that the virus was artificially produced in Chinese laboratories and intentionally spread internationally, with 62% of Poles blaming China for the epidemic, while in countries with a positive view of China, such as Serbia and Latvia, respondents believed that the Chinese Communist Party intentionally spread the virus globally. In addition, respondents in countries other than Russia were less likely to believe “anti-American” conspiracy theories, meaning they did not believe that Chinese diplomats were suggesting that U.S. forces brought the virus to China.
A new survey of eleven European powers conducted by the European Council on Foreign Relations shows that six in ten respondents believe China will be stronger than the United States within a decade,” explained Durecki, “Indeed, according to our survey, Europeans generally have a negative view of China, but they acknowledge that China will be a strong country, and therefore they want to be more effective on global issues such as epidemics, climate change, counterterrorism and other challenges. , counterterrorism and other challenges, and other global issues with China.”
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