A recent Pew survey on global threat perceptions throws up some rather intriguing insights. Conducted across 38 nations, including India but excluding China, which does not take kindly to international surveys on its soil, the poll indicates that the Daesh, or ISIS, and global warming are among the top concerns of most nations. The other threats listed include cyberattacks, the global economy, the growing refugee crisis caused by strife in the Middle East and Africa, and the increasing power being projected by the US, Russia and China.
Despite the fact that Daesh is yet to claim a terrorist strike in India, 66 per cent of Indians marked it as a major threat, followed by climate change at 47 per cent and China’s power and influence at 44. This was probably because the survey was conducted before the recent border row with China escalated into a showdown, with neither side showing any signs of backing down.
However, cyberattacks from foreign countries ranked fourth on India’s list at 43 per cent, and given China’s undoubted ability in that domain, the equation changes somewhat. In fact, cyberattacks from hostile nations and condition of global economy are named as major threats by global medians of 51 per cent each. Cyberwar was listed as the top concern in Japan and the second-highest concern in the US, Germany and the UK, where there have been a number of high-profile attacks of this type in recent months.
As for the Daesh, 18 of the 38 nations, mostly in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the US, believed it was the largest threat their countries faced. According to Pew, while the findings were similar to the earlier survey last year, “worries about the US and its power and influence have increased in many countries in Europe and around the world since the election of Donald Trump.” In India, however, only 19 per cent saw the US as a threat, while some 17 per cent saw Russia’s growing clout as a threat. One wonders what the Chinese list would have looked like.