Austria has become the most popular foreign country among Czechs, overtaking Switzerland in the latest annual survey by the STEM research institute.

Italy has also moved into the top tier of countries viewed most positively by the Czech public, joining Austria and Switzerland with an average score of 2 on a five-point scale.

The findings point to a modest improvement in Czech attitudes toward much of Europe. France, Germany and Slovakia all saw their ratings improve compared with last year, while Poland, Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway also gained slightly in public sympathy.

Austria received positive ratings from 71 percent of respondents, meaning they gave it a score of one or two. Italy and Poland followed closely behind, both with 68 percent. Slovakia, Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark, Canada, Sweden and Croatia were also viewed positively by between 61 and 67 percent of respondents.

Britain received positive ratings from 57 percent of respondents, followed by Japan and Belgium at 56 percent, France at 55 percent and both Slovenia and Germany at 54 percent.

Lithuania, Hungary and Taiwan remained in the middle of the rankings. Around 40 percent of respondents gave positive ratings to Lithuania and Hungary, while Taiwan was viewed favorably by 36 percent.

At the bottom of the list, Russia remained the least popular country among Czechs. Just 13 percent of respondents rated it positively, down from 15 percent last year. Nearly seven in ten people gave Russia a score of four or five, confirming that public hostility toward the country remains high more than four years after the start of the war in Ukraine.

Russia’s average score reached 4.1, making it the worst-rated country in the survey. China and Palestine also saw a clear drop in support. China received an average score of 3.5 and Palestine 3.8, both worsening compared with last year. Serbia also recorded a decline.

Less than one in five Czechs expressed a positive view of China, while only 9 percent viewed Palestine positively. Public attitudes toward both countries became more negative over the past year.

Ukraine, by contrast, continued to gain support. One-third of respondents said they had a positive view of the country, confirming a gradual upward trend in sympathy since the Russian invasion. Ukraine’s growing support stands in sharp contrast to the continued decline in views of Russia.

The survey also highlighted a split in Czech attitudes toward the United States. While views of the country itself improved slightly, President Donald Trump recorded his lowest approval rating since returning to office. Only 29 percent of respondents said they viewed the United States positively, while nearly the same share viewed it negatively. Around 40 percent chose the neutral middle rating.

Among the major European powers, Britain remained the best-rated, despite a slight decline compared with last year. France and Germany both improved, with more than half of respondents giving them positive scores.

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