The controversial actions and policies of the current U.S. administration under President Donald Trump is turning off residents from Mexico and Canada, as they have shifted away from previously favorable opinions of the United States into a much more negative view of their North American neighbor.
Trump has already divided people with his harsh rhetoric and tough stance on immigration, as well as engaging in trade disputes and tariff wars with nations which were previously seen as major trading partners.
His recent moves in ordering widely-condemned U.S. military operations in Venezuela and in the war on Iran have caused further dismay and drawn criticism from residents in neighboring countries.
"My opinion of the U.S. has changed a lot recently. I used to see it as a friendly country, but now they are putting up barriers everywhere. The country seems power hungry and forces suffering on migrants," said Mara Guzman, a resident from Mexico City.
"The country seems much more aggressive and threatening to other regions, and with more extreme politics of exclusion and racial superiority," said Diego Hernandez, another Mexico City resident.
"I'm from Canada, and we have always had very close ties to the U.S. [But] it's at a point now where I don't necessarily feel safe going to the U.S. on trips and visits and that sort of thing, especially when there's all these things about how they're trying to go through your phone, seeing who you support, seeing things that you've said," said David, a Canadian citizen in Mexico.
The U.S.' declining international image is also creating difficulties for American expatriates. In Ajijic, one of Mexico's major expatriate enclaves, U.S. citizens residing there say that Trump's second term has made their integration with the local community more challenging.
"It's an embarrassment to say I am an American in some conversations -- the idea of -- we are going to buy Canada, we are going to take over Cuba. His second administration has caused more resentment, I think, in the Mexican community," said Mark Heaton, a U.S. expatriate in Mexico.
Analysts warn that the mounting criticism of Trump's policies could ultimately weaken the U.S.' soft power and diminish its standing on the global stage.
"It does not matter when it comes to America's military power, or the ability to impose itself internationally. This is really about what we call 'soft power': a country's prestige, the values it represents, and its cultural influence, all of which are currently being eroded. In the long run, that can affect its credibility, its ability to negotiate, and how it is seen as a partner," said Fernando Dworak, an international political analyst.
North American neighbors unimpressed as Trump's controversial policies tarnish US image
