55% of the Europeans Agree with Trump: Migration Flows from the Muslim Countries Must Be Stopped

Day Figure

Author: Andrey Kortunov, Director General of the Russian International Affairs Council.

Donald  Trump's tough stance towards migrants arriving in the U.S. provoked harsh criticism from American liberals and especially their opinion allies in Europe.

The new President's attitude was condemned as disregard to "Western values" and a threat for the Transatlantic unity.

However, the recent survey conducted by influential British think-tank Chatham House in 10 European countries and covering 10,000 people, shows that the willingness to stop migration from Muslim-majority states in Europe is no smaller than that in the U.S.A.

On the average, 55% of the respondents claimed that all migration flows from Muslim countries had to be stopped, with only 20% being against the idea. 71% of Polish, 65% of Austrian, 64% of Hungarian and Belgian, 61% of French, 58% of Greek, 53% of German, 51% of Italian respondents are consistently against migrants from Muslim countries. Great Britain (47%) and Spain (41%) turned out to be quite "welcoming", but even there the opponents seriously outnumbered the supporters.

Also, according to Pew Research Center, the attitude to the Muslims that already live in Europe is predominantly negative in the majority of the European countries — in Hungary (72%), Italy (69%), Poland (66%), Greece (65%), Spain (50%).

Relatively lower level of enmity was observed in Germany (29%), France (29%) and Great Britain (28%).

Consequently, the perception of the issue of "Muslim" migration and Islam as such is not at all limited by Donald Trump'a eccentric views. It is transforming into one of the most fundamental challenges for the West.

Data

— Chatham House

— Pew Research Center