Ordinary Indians are more mature about Israel-Iran than the pundits
Even more tellingly, there is the spectacle of top American military leaders praising Pakistan as a 'Phenomenal Partner' in counter-terrorism efforts, and to cap it all, Trump invited Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir to the White House for a cosy lunch.Yet, the relative levels of distrust that ordinary Indians have towards the US vis-a-vis Russia are not a sudden, newfound, or fleeting phenomenon. It goes back decades to the 1971 war between India and Pakistan that led to the creation of Bangladesh. During that conflict, the US was unrelentingly hostile towards India and openly supportive of Pakistan. The ghosts and memories of that era linger.This doesn't mean Indians are hostile towards the US. Far from it. In the aftermath of economic reforms in 1991, economic ties between India and the US have consistently flourished. Till Trump acted like a bull in a China shop on the issue of immigration, India has been sending the largest number of students to American universities. Numerous CEOs of top American multinationals are of Indian origin. There is a lot of goodwill.CVoter surveys over the years have found that a big majority of Indians have a favourable opinion of the US. But an equal if not bigger majority has a favourable opinion of Russia. In many ways, the average Indian displays tremendous maturity: Engage with the US and pursue good relations because it will benefit India, but do not trust it as a reliable ally or partner.advertisementThat response is better than the hysterical response of social media 'patriots' who were in love with Trump till recently and now feel betrayed. It is far better than the two-faced response of liberals and intellectuals who think America leads a malign coterie that tramples upon Third World countries. Perhaps the public persona of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar represents the actual opinion of a majority of Indians.When it comes to Israel versus Iran, the gap is not as wide as the one between the US and Russia. But a significantly larger proportion of respondents (45 per cent) think Israel is more trustworthy than Iran (26 per cent). On this issue, one can see that polarised opinion is back in the fray. While just about four in ten supporters of the INDIA bloc think Iran is more trustworthy, less than two in ten NDA supporters share that sentiment. But even here, the polarisation is not as deep as in most other cases. An equal proportion of INDIA supporters think Iran and Israel are more trustworthy. One can clearly see a national consensus on this issue, and political parties would do well to pay attention to this.advertisementClose to half of the respondents think the real worry for India if the Israel-Iran conflict intensifies, is energy security. India is heavily dependent upon oil and gas imports, and a prolonged conflict in West Asia would not only disrupt supplies but also trigger a rise in oil and gas prices. Quite rightly, Indians have identified the real area of concern for their country rather than falling for rhetoric from ideological divides about Israel being a brutal colonial apartheid state and Iran being a brutal theocratic Islamic regime.
Yet another response to a question reveals the maturity of ordinary Indians. The question was: Do you think India's economic ties with Israel should continue regardless of regional tensions? While close to half said yes, another quarter was in favour of closer ties with Israel, but in a cautious manner. In effect, three-fourths of Indians want closer economic relationships between India and Israel. Only two in ten are not in favour.
advertisementA final set of responses and data points concludes the argument being made by the authors about the maturity of the average Indian, even when it comes to complex geopolitical issues. The survey asked: What do you think India's official stance on the Iran-Israel conflict should be? While 28 per cent wanted India to support Israel, about 19 per cent wanted India to support Iran. Close to half wanted India to remain neutral and call for peace.
The ordinary Indian, unlike ideologically blinkered intellectuals, understands that both Israel and Iran are important for India and there should be no binary options here. To cap it all, 53 per cent of respondents want India to step in as the mediator.
advertisementWhen Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022, there was an ideological divide between ardent fans of America and supporters of Russia. CVoter surveys at the time found ordinary Indians displaying the same measure of maturity that is on display now. Even better, the NDA regime's foreign policy reflects the opinion of a majority of Indians.(Yashwant Deshmukh is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of C-Voter Research Foundation and Sutanu Guru is Executive Director)- Ends(Views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the authors)Tune InMust Watch
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