FIRST ON FOX: Young Americans are far less likely than older generations to see China as a major threat to the United States, according to a new poll, revealing one of the sharpest generational divides in U.S. foreign policy.
\nSome 93% of Americans age 65 and older said they are concerned about China\u2019s ability to spy on the United States, compared with just 62% of those ages 18 to 29, according to the Ronald Reagan Institute Summer Survey.\u00a0
\nYounger Americans also were consistently less likely than seniors to express concern about China\u2019s potential use of force against Taiwan (56% versus 86%), technology theft (61% versus 91%), purchases of U.S. land (68% versus 93%) and China\u2019s role in the flow of fentanyl into the United States (68% versus 92%).
\nDespite the generational divide, concern about China remained high nationally. More than 80% of Americans said they were concerned about China\u2019s role in the flow of fentanyl into the United States, its ability to spy on Americans and its purchases of U.S. land. Sixty-six percent also said Taiwan\u2019s security matters to the United States.
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\nThe findings come as Washington and Beijing are trying to stabilize one of the world\u2019s most consequential relationships after years of escalating economic and military tensions.\u00a0\u00a0
\nAfter imposing triple-digit tariffs on China at the start of his administration, President Donald Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in China in May and announced a series of trade and investment agreements and pledged to continue dialogue.
\nWhile concern about China remains widespread across the country, the survey suggests younger Americans view the U.S.\u2019s chief geopolitical rival through a markedly different lens than older generations, raising questions about how public attitudes could evolve as younger voters make up a larger share of the electorate.
\nThe findings stand out because they diverge from the prevailing view among many national security experts, who continue to characterize China as America\u2019s principal long-term neer-pear competitor and adversary, even as Washington and Beijing seek to stabilize their relationship through diplomacy.
\n\u201cThere is rightful alarm regarding China\u2019s historic military buildup and the expansion of its military activities in the region and beyond,\u201d War Secretary Pete Hegseth at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore in May.\u00a0
\nBut, he added, U.S.\u2013China relations are \u201cbetter than they\u2019ve been in many years.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
After the May summit between Trump and Xi, the U.S. president told reporters: \u201cWe settled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn\u2019t have been able to solve.\u201d
\nHe called Xi a \u201cgreat leader\u201d and China a \u201cgreat country.\u201d\u00a0
\nOther recent research points to broader differences in how Gen Z views U.S. foreign policy.\u00a0
\nA 2025 Carnegie Endowment survey found younger Americans were less likely than older generations to prioritize maintaining U.S. technological dominance over China and generally favored a less expansive American leadership role abroad.
\nThe Reagan Institute Summer Survey is the organization\u2019s annual public opinion poll on foreign policy and national security, designed to gauge Americans\u2019 views on issues ranging from global engagement and military strength to China, NATO, the Middle East and democratic values.
\nThe poll also found broad shifts by party on what America\u2019s role in the world should look like: Republicans were more likely than Democrats to say the United States should be more engaged and take the lead in world affairs.
\nSeventy-one percent of Republicans said the U.S. should take a leading role internationally, compared with 55% of Democrats. Overall, 61% of Americans said the U.S. should be more engaged in global affairs, while 27% preferred a less engaged approach.
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The findings represent a notable shift from recent years.\u00a0
\nDemocratic support for greater U.S. engagement fell from 65% to 55% over the past year, while Republican support increased from 69% to 71%, widening the partisan gap from four percentage points to 16. The survey also found 43% of Democrats now say U.S. involvement in the world is harmful, up from 22% a year ago.
\nThe survey was conducted May 26 through June 3 among 1,555 U.S. adults and carries a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. Researchers used a mixed-mode methodology that included live telephone interviews, an online panel and text-to-web responses.<\/p>\n
To better reflect the U.S. population, the results were weighted using demographic benchmarks from the U.S. Census Bureau\u2019s 2023 American Community Survey, including age, gender, race, region and education. The survey also included an oversample of 338 self-identified MAGA Republicans under age 30, which carries a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points.
\nThe findings also come after a year in which the Trump administration has taken a more assertive posture overseas than some expected.\u00a0
\nIn addition to ordering strikes on Iran, the administration has expanded military operations against cartel-linked targets in the Western Hemisphere and intervened to capture former President Nicolas Maduro Venezuela, moves that have put questions of American power and global leadership back at the center of public debate.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"