America needs to understand who its true friends are? Is Pakistan hiding bin Laden or else...'

America needs to understand who its true friends are? Pakistan is hiding Laden or else…’ Last Updated: 18 Oct 2025, 02:17 IST India USA Pakistan: Tony Abbott raised questions about Pakistan’s military system and radical Islamist tendencies. He described India as a democratic superpower and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Shahbaz Sharif, Prime Minister of Pakistan, with US President Donald Trump at the White House. (File photo) New Delhi. Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said on Friday that Pakistan is basically a military society with strong Islamic tendencies, while India is completely different. Taking part in the NDTV World Summit in the national capital on Friday, Abbott targeted Pakistan for supporting terrorism and recalled how al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden was found in Abbottabad. Asked about statements by top US generals about working with Pakistan on terrorism, Abbott said Pakistan cooperated with the US so much that it gave Osama bin Laden a hideout for nearly a decade. He said that there are some good people in Pakistan that one can work with, but the system there is military and has radical Islamic influence. India, on the other hand, is completely different. Abbott said America should work with Pakistan whenever possible, but he needs to understand who his true friends are. He told that when he was the Prime Minister, he tried to build good relations with everyone, but friends are only those with whom we have common interests, values ​​and history. Abbott emphasized that America’s core interests lie in a stronger friendship with India than with Pakistan. He said India’s core interests lie in strong partnerships with democratic countries. He described India as an emerging democratic superpower and emphasized that the 21st century will be as much about India as it is about China. He said that the Prime Minister of India can become the leader of the free world in the next 40-50 years. The former Australian prime minister said that China’s leadership is a party dictatorship, not a personal dictatorship. As Prime Minister, I always said that India will emerge as a democratic superpower. Now it happened. The Prime Minister of India is likely to become the leader of the free world in the next 40-50 years. He also spoke about the increasing racial attacks against Indians in Australia. He said that there are two issues here. Is there too much immigration to Australia? We had record numbers of immigration throughout the year. Is it necessary to reduce immigration? The second issue is crime. There is a crime problem in Melbourne. Some gangs are out of control. Victorian Police are working on this. Now the time has come for the police to control the roads again. Abbott said that at this critical time for the wider world, it was important that Australia and India build on their friendship, which is deep and growing stronger. The former Australian Prime Minister told IANS, “I am a great admirer of Prime Minister Modi. I think he was a transformative Prime Minister and he is a great historical figure.” About the Author Rakesh Ranjan Kumar Rakesh Ranjan Kumar has over 10 years of experience in digital journalism. Before joining News18, he worked in Live Hindustan, Dainik Jagran, Zee News, Jansatta and Dainik Bhaskar. Currently h…Read more Rakesh Ranjan Kumar has more than 10 years of experience in digital journalism. Before joining News18, he worked in Live Hindustan, Dainik Jagran, Zee News, Jansatta and Dainik Bhaskar. Currently h… Read more Click here to add News18 as your favorite news source on Google. Location: New Delhi, Delhi First published: October 18, 2025, 02:14 IST homemenation ‘US needs to understand who are its true friends? Pakistan is hiding bin Laden…’