Americans roundly believe that Vladimir Putin was the most effective world leader in the Syrian chemical weapons crisis earlier this month, with 49 percent naming giving the Russian president credit for steering events on the international stage.

By contrast, just 25 percent of those in an Economist/YouGov survey released Wednesday said President Obama was the most effective world leader. And 9 percent named Syrian President Bashar Assad as the most effective leader.

Republicans overwhelmingly say Putin was the most effective leader, showing a 63-4 percent split in favor of the ex-KGB agent versus President Obama. But even among Democrats, Obama only held a 44-37 percent advantage over Putin.