Survey finds India, Pakistan view each other as greatest threat

A LARGE section of Indians and Pakistanis view each other as their greatest threat, reflecting the distrust between the two neighbours, a new survey has found.

According to American think tank Pew Research, 54 per cent of surveyed adults in India described Pakistan as their greatest geopolitical threat, followed by China at 21 per cent.

Similarly, 43 per cent of Pakistanis saw India as their greatest threat, while 24 per cent each held the same views about Israel and China.

Pakistanis clearly point to China (75 per cent) as their most important ally and, to a lesser degree, to Saudi Arabia (12 per cent).

About a third of Indians say Russia is their top ally (36 per cent), while 16 per cent name the US. Roughly a third of Indians did not answer the question.

Despite the camaraderie between US President Donald Trump and Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir, only 15 per cent of Pakistanis hold a favourable opinion about the US. An overwhelming 90 per cent had a favourable view about China.

Pew Research found that only 12 per cent of Pakistanis had confidence in Trump to do the right thing in world affairs, while 83 per cent held similar views about China's President Xi Jinping.

Indians held much more positive views of Russia, with 58 per cent expressing a favourable view and 51 per cent having confidence in President Vladimir Putin. Among Pakistanis, the figures were 39 per cent and 32 per cent respectively.

Just 23 per cent of Indians view China positively, while 25 per cent trust Xi Jinping's global leadership.

Forty-five per cent of surveyed Indians viewed the US favourably, while 39 per cent expressed more confidence in Trump.

The survey among adults in four South Asian nations — India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka — threw up varying results.

An overwhelming majority of Sri Lankans (79 per cent) express a positive view of India, compared with 42 per cent of Bangladeshis and 7 per cent of Pakistanis.

Sixty-three per cent of Sri Lankans name India as their most important ally, while Bangladeshis and Pakistanis most often name India as their greatest threat.

In the US, 45 per cent of Americans view India favourably, while 50 per cent view it unfavourably.

As many as 50 per cent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents have a favourable view of India, compared with 42 per cent of Republicans and Republican leaners.

Over 54 per cent of Americans surveyed say that India's global influence in recent years has stayed about the same, while 30 per cent say it is getting stronger. Another 13 per cent say India's influence has been getting weaker.