Public is pro-European and against autocrats

After successive crises – the country’s near default and the pandemic being the most significant – that tested their confidence in the EU and liberal ideas, Greeks seem to be returning to views they espoused in the more optimistic early 2000s, a survey by think tank DiaNEOsis shows.

A positive view of the EU is held by 64% of respondents, versus 34% who are critical, a turnaround from the depths of the financial crisis. 

France is considered by far Greece’s closest ally and President Emmanuel Macron is by far the most popular among world leaders, with 65% positive views, far ahead of Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy (34%) and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (30%). Autocrats such as Russia’s Vladimir Putin (18.8%) and China’s Xi Jinping (18.5%) do not fare well. Unsurprisingly, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is the least popular foreign leader, at 5.7%.