How does the world see India? Forward of Independence Day, a brand new survey by the Pew Analysis Centre of 36 international locations presents a sharply contrasting image. Whereas India is beloved by Sri Lanka probably the most, there aren’t any surprises in guessing who’s on the different excessive – Pakistan. In the US, in the meantime, opinion about India is sort of evenly break up.
General, the survey, which was performed between February and Might this yr and included over 42,000 individuals, revealed that folks in 36 international locations view India extra positively than negatively. Throughout these international locations, a median of 45% had a beneficial view of India, as in opposition to 41% who view it unfavourably.
WHAT SURVEY REVEALS ON INDIA’S GLOBAL IMAGE?
The survey revealed that Sri Lanka, at 79%, had probably the most beneficial notion of India amongst all of the international locations surveyed. Round 63% of the Sri Lankan respondents additionally recognized India because the nation’s key ally. Solely 11% view India unfavourably.
It’s a important leg-up from 2024, when 65% of the Sri Lankans surveyed had a constructive view.
The beneficial view of India comes in opposition to the backdrop of a reset in Delhi-Colombo ties. Following the 2022 unrest in Sri Lanka as a result of an financial disaster, India has helped rebuild the island nation by means of credit score traces and monetary help exceeding USD 7.5 billion.
India additionally instructions a beneficial notion in Kenya (71%), the UK (71%), Israel (60%), Germany (63%), Italy (56%) and Sweden (55%).
INDIA’S NEIGHBOURHOOD STORY
The image is extra blended in India’s neighbourhood, the place a number of international locations like Nepal and Bangladesh have been by means of turbulent intervals and uprisings.
In Bangladesh, 42% have a beneficial view of India, as in opposition to 51% who’ve an unfavourable notion. Ties between the neighbours have been turbulent of late over India giving shelter to deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina. Hasina was pressured to flee Bangladesh in 2024 amid a violent student-led rebellion that left over 500 lifeless.
In Malaysia, which noticed an ‘India Out’ marketing campaign in 2024, round 58% have an unfavourable view of India.
Nonetheless, India will get a comparatively constructive evaluation in a number of different Asian international locations. Round 55% of Japanese, 51% of Singaporeans, and 50% of Indonesians view India favourably. India additionally enjoys robust rankings within the Philippines (49%) and in Thailand (55%).
Expectedly, Pakistan stands out as an awesome outlier. Based on the Pew survey, 91% of these surveyed in Pakistan have an unfavourable view of India. Curiously, 7% have a beneficial opinion. I stated attention-grabbing as a result of Pakistan has lengthy been identified for suppressing dissent in its hybrid civilian-military setup.
The end result, nevertheless, is hardly stunning given the long-running tensions between the 2 nuclear-armed neighbours. Ties reached their lowest ebb following the Might 2025 hostilities and the diplomatic spat over India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty.
India launched Operation Sindoor final yr, destroying terror camps and putting Pakistani air bases in response to the Pahalgam terror assault.
After Pakistan, rankings are the bottom in Turkey (15% beneficial) and within the West Financial institution and East Jerusalem (18%). In Australia, which lately noticed anti-immigrant protests, round 55% have an unfavourable view of India.
HOW DOES THE US VIEW INDIA?
The survey reveals that the Individuals are divided on India.
Half of these surveyed within the US stated they’ve an unfavourable view of India, whereas 45% made a constructive evaluation. In its report, Pew famous that the rankings are a few of the lowest since 2008.
In truth, information present that the share of Individuals with a beneficial view has fallen from 51% in 2023 to 45% in 2026.
Nonetheless, there may be additionally a partisan divide on how Individuals view India. Round 50% of Democrats have a beneficial view of India, in contrast with 42% of Republicans – Donald Trump’s social gathering.
Pew additionally requested Individuals about India’s affect on the earth. Whereas 30% stated it was getting stronger, over half of the respondents (54%) stated its affect lately has remained the identical. One other 13% stated India’s affect was on the wane.
Beneath Trump, ties between India and the US have been chequered over tariffs and an impending commerce deal. Trump’s warming as much as Pakistan, which has left no stone unturned in massaging his ego, has additionally led to uneasiness in ties.
General, the survey displays a transparent regional divide. India enjoys significantly robust rankings in components of Asia and Africa, whereas opinions are extra blended in Europe and Latin America. Within the US, the opinion is break up.
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