WASHINGTON, March 9: Pakistan and Afghanistan are among the 10 most unpopular countries in the United States despite their close ties to the US administration, says a recent survey by Gallup, USA.

Iran tops the list of nations that are viewed unfavourably in America. An overwhelming majority – 88 per cent – of respondents to this survey said they view Iran unfavourably while only 8 per cent said they viewed it favourably.

Of 22 countries rated in Gallup’s 2008 World Affairs survey, Canada, Britain, Germany, and Japan were viewed favourably by at least 80 per cent of Americans.

In some cases – Iran, Venezuela and North Korea – the popular perception endorsed the official policy as all these countries are also denigrated by the US administration. Besides Afghanistan and Pakistan, others on the unfavourable list are Saudi Arabia and Iraq. These countries are counted among America’s closest allies by the administration but do not enjoy a favourable image in the American public.

Pakistan is 6th on the list with 72 per cent respondents saying they see it unfavourably while 22 per cent viewed it favourably.

Afghanistan comes right after Pakistan with 73 per cent Americans saying they view it unfavourably while 21 per cent see it favourably.

Second on the negative list is North Korea with 82 per cent viewing it unfavourably and 12 per cent favourably.

The Palestinian Authority is third: 75 per cent view it unfavourably and 14 per cent favourably.

Iraq, where the United States is engaged in an apparently unwinnable war, is the 4th most unpopular nation in the United States: 77 per cent view it unfavourably and 20 per cent favourably.

Cuba did slightly better than both Pakistan and Afghanistan: 67 percent view it unfavourably and 27 per cent favourably.

Saudi Arabia is 8th on this list, with 61 per cent Americans viewing it unfavourably and 31 per cent favourably.

Venezuela is 9th, with 50 per cent viewing it unfavourably and 37 per cent favourably.

China is 10th, with 55 per cent viewing it unfavourably and 42 per cent favourably.

A total of 1,007 Americans – aged 18 and older – were interviewed for this survey, which has a margin of error of plus minus 3 per cent.

Not all respondents viewed the countries as favourably or unfavourably. A small minority remained neutral, saying that it had no views.

Canada came out as the most favoured nation with 92 per cent saying they view it favourably while 89 per cent favoured Britain, 82 per cent liked Germany and 80 per cent backed Japan.

Canada and Britain have topped Gallup’s country rankings each of the 12 times since 1989, although in most cases Canada has led Britain by a few percentage points.

The only other country to approach 90 per cent favourability over the years has been Australia. On each of the three occasions it was included in Gallup’s country list, including last year, it ranked just as high as Britain.

Following the top four, Israel receives a 71 per cent favourable rating, similar to the 69 per cent for both India and France. About 6 in 10 Americans have a favourable view of Egypt, South Korea, and Mexico.

Americans are about equally divided in their views of Russia and Kenya, with a fairly large percentage (21) having no opinion of Kenya.

Iran, North Korea, the Palestinian Authority, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Cuba are viewed more negatively than positively by a greater than 2-to-1 margin. Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, and China have somewhat more moderately negative images.

Gallup finds some significant generational and partisan gaps in favourability toward some countries.

Israel, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq are all viewed more favourably by Republicans than by Democrats.

France, Mexico, China, Venezuela, and Cuba are all viewed more favourably by Democrats than by Republicans.

Two of the starkest demographic distinctions in survey ratings are age differences in perceptions of Russia and China.

About 6 in 10 young adults (those aged 18 to 34) have a favourable view of these countries, compared with no more than half of middle-aged adults and only about a third of those 55 and older.

Younger adults are also more likely than those 55 and older to have favourable views of France, Egypt, Mexico, Kenya, Venezuela, Cuba, the Palestinian Authority, North Korea, and Iran.