Trump found himself on the same negative ranking list as Putin and Lukashenko
Emmanuel Macron topped the list of politicians most liked by Ukrainians, while Donald Trump was among those rated the worst. At the same time, Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko remain the clear leaders of the “least popular” list—97% and 90% of respondents, respectively, view them negatively.
Ukrainians have mixed views on world leaders. This is evidenced by the results of a Rating Group survey conducted August 4–9, 2026. Ukrainians view French President Emmanuel Macron most favorably. He received a positive rating from 79% of respondents. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz took second place. He is viewed positively by 64% of respondents.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan came in third. His work and policies are viewed positively by 61% of respondents. Sociologists note that Ukrainians’ attitudes toward Macron and Erdoğan have improved compared to 2024. At the same time, Merz received a higher rating than his predecessor as chancellor, Olaf Scholz. In February 2025, 57% of Ukrainians viewed Scholz favorably. Now, the figure for Merz stands at 64%.
Trump Among the Outsiders
The situation is quite different for U.S. President Donald Trump. Only 16% of Ukrainians view him positively, while 77% expressed a negative attitude. Thus, Trump finds himself at the bottom of the rankings alongside the politicians toward whom Ukrainians are most critical.
The assessment of Poland’s new president, Karol Nawrocki, has also changed. He is viewed positively by 20% of respondents, while 62% view him negatively. By comparison, in February 2025, 72% of respondents viewed then-Polish President Andrzej Duda positively. Following the change in presidency, the Polish leader’s approval rating among Ukrainians has dropped significantly.
Mágyar Surpasses Orbán
There is also a noticeable difference in the assessments of Hungarian politicians. Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar is viewed much more favorably by Ukrainians than his predecessor, Viktor Orbán. Seventy-four percent of respondents view Orbán negatively. Mályi’s results in the survey turned out to be significantly better.
Putin and Lukashenko Remain the Main Outsiders
Ukrainians expressed the most negative views toward Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Belarus’s self-proclaimed president, Alexander Lukashenko. 97% of respondents view Putin negatively. This is the highest rate of negative sentiment among all politicians included in the survey.
As for Lukashenko, 90% of respondents spoke negatively about him. Thus, even against the backdrop of Trump’s low ratings, it is Putin and Lukashenko who remain the undisputed leaders of the anti-rating among Ukrainians.
How the survey was conducted
The survey was conducted by Rating Group. It took place from August 4 to 9, 2026. A total of 2,000 Ukrainians aged 18 and older participated. Pollsters conducted telephone interviews using a computerized system.
The survey covered territory controlled by Ukraine. However, areas where Ukrainian mobile service was unavailable at the time of the survey were excluded from the sample. The maximum margin of error for the survey is 2.2% at a 95% confidence level.
The results show that Ukrainians’ attitudes toward foreign leaders depend heavily on those leaders’ policies toward Ukraine and Russia. European leaders, whom Ukrainians perceive as supporters of Ukraine, topped the ranking, while Putin and Lukashenko remain the politicians with the highest levels of negative sentiment. This was reported by Rating Group.
