Now Reading: Pew survey finds India and Pakistan view each other as top threats
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Pew survey finds India and Pakistan view each other as top threats
Pew survey finds India and Pakistan view each other as top threats
A Pew Research survey found that 54 per cent of Indian adults named Pakistan as their greatest geopolitical threat, followed by China at 21 per cent. In Pakistan, 43 per cent named…
The Story in Brief
A Pew Research survey found that 54 per cent of Indian adults named Pakistan as their greatest geopolitical threat, followed by China at 21 per cent. In Pakistan, 43 per cent named India as the biggest threat, while 24 per cent each cited Israel and China. The findings cover adults in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
Pakistanis most often named China as their key ally, at 75 per cent. Russia was the top choice among 36 per cent of Indians, followed by the US at 16 per cent. Views of China were positive among 90 per cent of Pakistanis but 23 per cent of Indians. Sri Lanka recorded the strongest positive view of India, at 79 per cent.
The Indian Opinion
The easy story is that South Asia is locked into permanent hostility, but the survey measures public perceptions, not government policy or actual security risks. Another lazy reading would treat ally choices as fixed loyalties, despite the sizeable share of Indians who did not answer that question. The useful test is whether these views shift after sustained diplomatic contact, trade and fewer security crises. A future survey will show whether distrust is durable or simply responsive to events.
Source: thefederal.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
