Muslims from impoverished nations with low literacy rates and a high dependence on foreign aid hold the most positive views on relations with the West, according to a newly released poll. But Western states were perceived the worst by the people of predominantly Muslim countries engaged in conflicts, directly or indirectly, with the West, showed the survey by the Abu Dhabi Gallup Centre.
Senegal, Mauritania and Mali topped the Gallup Muslim-West Perceptions Index showing the most positive attitude towards the West, while Yemen, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan were at the bottom. Egypt, Libya, Syria and Yemen - where unprecedented anti-regime protests have transformed the political landscape this year - also fell in the lower half of the index. Wealthier Gulf Arab states have some of the best perceptions of Muslim-West ties, according to the poll with Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in the index's upper half.