As the United States and Australia celebrate 75 years since the signing of the ANZUS Treaty this week, new polling from the United States Studies Centre (USSC) at the University of Sydney shows Australian views of China diverging from their Quad country counterparts.
In the Allies and Partners Poll 2026: Alliances hold, views fragment, authors Senior Research Associate Samuel Garrett, Senior Research Associate Ava Kalinauskas and Director of Research Jared Mondschein note that while views of alliances between the Quad countries remain stable, even following a year of geopolitical turmoil, views on China are diverging. Nevertheless, support for AUKUS and ANZUS remains consistent with 2025.
“For the first time since we began polling on the topic in 2022, Australians view China and the United States as equally helpful in Asia,” Mondschein said, “While more Australians view China as harmful than helpful, their views of US and Chinese influence are converging.”
Australians are also the only Quad country to view China more as an economic partner than a danger. The polling found a significant difference in attitudes towards China based on age with young Australians and Americans fare more likely to hold a positive view of China that their older counterparts.
The poll of over 1,000 respondents in each of the Quad countries (Australia, India, Japan and the United States) covered views of alliances, AUKUS, China, US tariffs, Taiwan, AI and democracy. While Australian views of President Trump remained negative, they remain committed to the alliance with more than three times as many respondents wanting to stick with the alliance than abandon it.
“The 75th anniversary of ANZUS is a good opportunity to take stock of the alliance,” Mondschein noted, “We have seen that, in spite of views negative views of President Trump, Australians remain committed to the alliance and Americans are ten times as likely to say their alliance with Australia makes them more secure than not.”
The Allies and Partners Poll 2026: Alliances hold, views fragment is now available to view online with interactive charts to explore the data.
Read the report nowKey findings
- Roughly a third of Australians (32%) now say the second Trump administration has been very bad for Australia — a 10-percentage point increase since 2025. However, overall sentiment remains consistent with 2025 levels: only 16% of Australians, 8% of Japanese respondents and 15% of Indians think that Trump’s second term has been good for their countries.
- A plurality of Australians (48%) think Australia having nuclear-powered submarines is a good idea. Only 20% of Australians believe the partnership should be cancelled altogether, while 41% disagree. However, 24% of younger Australians want to cancel AUKUS (up from 16% in 2025), compared to 16% of those aged over 65.
- Americans continue to believe their key alliances make the United States more secure. They are three times as likely to say so about NATO and ten times as likely to say so about Australia as not — a sentiment shared by a strong plurality of Trump voters in each case.
- Australians now see China (23%) and the United States (22%) as equally helpful in Asia. Two years ago, Australians were twice as likely to view the United States (35%) as helpful in Asia, compared to China (18%).
- A plurality (37%) of Australians aged under 35 now view China as mostly helpful in Asia compared to 16% of those over 65. The number of Australians under 35 who agree has increased by nine percentage points since 2025 and by 16 points since 2023.