Archive · 20 Aug 2026
Indians and Pakistanis Share Deep Mistrust of Each Other
A survey looked at how people in India and Pakistan feel about each other.
Most people in both countries had negative opinions of the other country.
Only a small number had favourable views.
Many people trusted their own country to want peaceful relations, but did not trust the other country as much.
India and Pakistan were each seen as the biggest threat by many people on the opposite side.
Some Indians also saw China as a major threat.
Some Pakistanis listed Israel and the United States as other major threats.
Russia was the ally most often named by Indians, while Pakistanis most often named China.
Indians generally liked Russia and its president, while Pakistanis had strongly positive views of China and Xi Jinping.
The report found overwhelmingly unfavourable views of Pakistan among Indians and of India among Pakistanis, though the reported Indian total contains an arithmetic discrepancy.
Only 7% of Indians and 8% of Pakistanis expressed favourable views of the other country.
Most people in both countries trusted their own government and citizens more than those across the border to support good relations.
India and Pakistan were identified as each other’s greatest geopolitical threat by 54% of Indians and 43% of Pakistanis, respectively.
Russia was the most cited ally in India, while China was the most cited ally in Pakistan, with both countries viewing their preferred partner positively.
- Who
- Adults in India and Pakistan, including Indian Muslims and Hindus.
- What
- A report measured their views of each other, bilateral relations, geopolitical threats, and preferred allies.
- When
- The report does not specify the survey date; it references trends over the last decade.
- Where
- India and Pakistan.
- Why
- The research examined public sentiment, mutual distrust, perceived threats, and international alignments.
Indian public perspective
Pakistani public perspective
Views of the other country
Indian public perspective
Indians were overwhelmingly unfavourable toward Pakistan; 78% were very unfavourable and 18% somewhat unfavourable, according to the report.
Pakistani public perspective
Pakistanis were also largely unfavourable toward India; 65% were very unfavourable and 13% somewhat unfavourable.
Perceived geopolitical threat
Indian public perspective
54% of Indians named Pakistan as India’s greatest threat, while 21% named China.
Pakistani public perspective
43% of Pakistanis named India as their greatest threat; Israel and the United States were each cited among Pakistan’s other major threats at 24%.
Preferred international partner
Indian public perspective
Russia was the ally most often identified by Indians, and Indians expressed broadly positive views of Russia and Vladimir Putin.
Pakistani public perspective
China was the ally most often identified by Pakistanis, who also expressed strongly positive views of China and Xi Jinping.
- Views of Pakistan in India
- 78% of Indians had very unfavourable views and 18% had somewhat unfavourable views; the article describes this as 91%, although the two figures add to 96%.
- Views of India in Pakistan
- 65% of Pakistanis had very unfavourable views and 13% had somewhat unfavourable views, totalling 78%.
- Favourable views
- 7% of Indians viewed Pakistan favourably, compared with 8% of Pakistanis who viewed India favourably.
- Greatest perceived threat
- Pakistan was named by 54% of Indians, while India was named by 43% of Pakistanis.
- Preferred ally
- Russia was identified by 36% of Indians; 75% of Pakistanis identified China.
- Views of Russia and Vladimir Putin
- 58% of Indians viewed Russia favourably and 51% expressed confidence in Vladimir Putin.
- Views of China and Xi Jinping
- 90% of Pakistanis viewed China favourably and 83% expressed confidence in Xi Jinping.