A recent survey by Chinese newspaper Global Times has found that foreign perceptions of China are generally "friendly" and "cooperative."
The impressions gleaned from the poll, which was conducted between Sept. 25 and Nov. 17, show a significant change from last year's "confident" and "holds military power in high esteem."
The survey, performed online and via telephone, had 17,544 respondents above 18 and living in Russia, Japan, the U.S., South Korea, Australia, the U.K., Brazil, South Africa and China.
Some 29.3 percent of the respondents saw China as "cooperative," which is about 5 percent higher than those who thought China "holds military power in high esteem."
Those who found China to be "friendly" constituted 28 percent of those who responded.
By contrast, the survey last year had 30.3 percent of the respondents who thought China was "confident" and 29.4 percent who saw China as holding "military power in high esteem."
This year's poll, however, showed that more than 20 percent of those who answered thought China to be "complicated," while several Japanese respondents perceived China as "arrogant." Many Australians saw the country as having a "tough" image.
"China's attitude toward the East China Sea and the South China Sea explains why the country is seen as 'complicated,' 'tough,' and arrogant' by the public around the world," said international relations professor Jia Qingguo of Peking University.
At any rate, the poll found that more than 75 percent of the respondents from 16 countries hold China in a positive or neutral light, while 33.4 percent had a positive attitude toward the country.
Moreover, 45.7 percent believe that China will turn out to be the most influential country in Asian matters in the next 10 years.