Russia's reputation falls by 19 percent worldwide - Switzerland slips three places
Following the invasion of Ukraine, Russia's global reputation has dropped enormously, namely by 19 percent compared to the previous year. This is the result of a recent study by Brand Finance. Switzerland also fell from 5th to 8th place.
The study shows: All countries surveyed hold Russia responsible for the war in Ukraine - with the exception of China and India. Solidarity with Ukraine is strong and has a positive impact on the global perception of the country.
The current study is a supplement to the "Brand Finance Global Soft Power Index 2022" report, which annually records the perception of country brands. The USA takes first place in the ranking, followed by the UK in second place and Germany in third place.
When asked who bears the main responsibility for the war in Ukraine, a clear majority of respondents in the study blamed Russia. This was also the case in Germany: 67% of Germans surveyed blamed Russia for the war in Ukraine. As a result, Russia has lost 19 percent of its reputation worldwide. Other countries, such as China (52%) and India (46%), however, blame the USA. Interesting: almost a quarter, 22% to be precise, of Americans blame their own country for the Russia-Ukraine conflict
Division in the USA
"This new study shows how strongly different news sources influence how people around the world classify current events. While on a global level the perception of Russia has undoubtedly worsened, the specific impact varies from country to country. What is most surprising, however, is how divided the American public is on the war in Ukraine," explains David Haigh, CEO of Brand Finance.
Last year's winner Germany slips to third place in the Global Soft Power Index 2022 - overtaken by the USA (first place) and the UK (second place). Nevertheless, Germany's overall ranking remains very stable and at a high level.
Switzerland slips down three places
Switzerland and Austria also lost places in the "Brand Finance Global Soft Power Index 2022" report. Switzerland is in the top ten - but has slipped from fifth place (2021) to eighth place (2022), with an overall score of 56.6 points. Austria dropped four places compared to the previous year - to 27th place.
The Global Soft Power Index is a fully survey-based annual research study on the perception of national brands. The Global Soft Power Index gathers the opinions of over 100,000 respondents worldwide on 120 national brands. Brand Finance is a leading independent global brand valuation and analysis consultancy headquartered in London.
Soft power is defined as the ability of a nation to influence the preferences and behavior of various actors in the international arena (states, companies, communities, the public, etc.) through attraction or persuasion rather than coercion.
The report on the Download and further information
