Lots of Americans fear that Russia has returned as a major player in the Middle East. Lots of Arabs seem to hope so.

The impression rests on Russia’s successful intervention, along with its allies Iran and Hezbollah, in the Syrian war. Even Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made more trips to Moscow of late than to Washington, as Israel tries to secure its interests in Syria.

Among U.S. Arab allies, too, Russia's influence has been growing, and not just with governments.

The last two editions of the Arab Youth Survey, an annual study of attitudes among 18- to 24-year-olds in the Middle East and North Africa, show young Arabs increasingly looking to Russia as an ally and viewing the U.S. as unreliable or worse.

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Young Arabs unsurprisingly identified Iran as the main national "enemy" at 64 percent, but the U.S. came in second at 59 percent.

Meanwhile, the U.S. reputation as an ally is in decline. The proportion of young Arabs identifying it that way has gone from 63 percent in 2016 to 35 percent last year before ticking up a little to 41 percent now. Russia, by contrast, continues to get high marks, down slightly from 69 percent last year to 65 percent now.

Personalities are also in play. Trump is widely regarded globally as an absurd figure and champion of racists. Russian President Vladimir Putin, by contrast, manages to convey strength, determination, ruthlessness and gravitas. It also doesn't hurt that Trump seems to be in awe of him.

Thus Putin seems to personify a determined and reliable Russia versus an indecisive and hapless U.S.