[COVER STORY] Trump's America is losing Koreans

Koreans are increasingly viewing the U.S. unfavorably, with less trust as a partner than before, according to a recent survey released by Washington-headquartered Pew Research Center.

Experts and Korean citizens say the unfavorable sentiment was driven largely by the Donald Trump administration’s unilateral policies that often put more importance on transactions rather than alliances with trade and security partners.

The survey showed 55 percent of Koreans expressed unfavorable views of the U.S. during the survey period from March 3 to April 4, including 18 percent who held very unfavorable views.

It was 16 percentage points up from the 2025 figure.

At the same time, 45 percent said they held favorable opinions of the U.S., down 16 percentage points, according to the survey of 1,045 Korean adults.

Favorability reached its peak at 89 percent in 2022 under the Joe Biden administration.

This was the first time unfavorable views took the majority since 2002.

It is also the second time that unfavorable views surpassed favorable views following 2003, when unfavorability stood at 50 percent co