Opinion Poll: Korea, Japan, China, U.S., Germany and France

Opinion Poll: Korea, Japan, China, U.S., Germany and France. August. 06, 2005 06:18. by Sun-Mi Kim sunny60@donga.com.

The Influence of Nuclear Weapons-

Koreans see the influence of nuclear powers as greater compared with other peoples. Some 62 percent of Koreans agree with the argument that a nuclear weapon can deter other countries from invading, while 63 percent responded positively to the idea that a nuclear weapon earns a country a stronger political influence.

However, the Japanese were found to have different ideas. A mere 35 percent and 33 percent, respectively, gave positive responses to the same two questions. Among Germans, the figure was about 23 percent and 50 percent, which are similar to Japanese.

Chinese responded similarly to Korean respondents with 57 percent and 70 percent, respectively, to the two questions.

Possession of Nuclear Weapons-

In response to the question, “Do you expect the number of nuclear weapons states to increase?” nuclear weapons states tended to give positive answers to the question (76 percent in the U.S., 75 percent in China and 63 percent in France), while the figure from non-nuclear weapons states was relatively low, ranging from 53 to 55 percent.

As to perspectives of their own countries owning nuclear weapons, 52 percent of Koreans responded positively, while 43 percent gave a negative response. By contrast, 86 percent of Japanese and 93 percent of Germans said no to the question.

Regarding North Korea’s possession of nuclear weapons, 57 percent of South Koreans were opposed, but as many as 41 percent said that the Communist state could have nuclear weapons.

The Possibility of Using Nuclear Weapons-

About the question, “Do you think nuclear weapons will be used somewhere in the world within 10 years from now?” only the U.S. out of six countries expected high possibilities.

About 59 percent of Korean respondents said, “They would not be used.” The same figure came from China and France. It was found that 71 percent of Germans denied the possibility of using nuclear weapons within the next 10 years, which is the highest figure. Also, more Japanese (49 percent) responded negatively.

However, as many as 69 percent of American respondents said that nuclear weapons “will be used” within the next 10 years, demonstrating a opposite result to the other five countries.

User of Nuclear Weapons-

Regarding the question, “Who has higher possibilities to use nuclear weapons?” more Americans (74 percent) said terrorist groups were more likely than nuclear weapons states (23 percent). About 65 percent of Germans said terrorist groups.

Korea, Japan and China think nuclear weapons states and terrorist groups have a 50-50 percent chance of using nuclear weapons. France viewed the chance of nuclear weapons states’ use as slightly higher.

Dismantlement of Nuclear Weapons-

In response to the question, “Is dismantlement of nuclear weapons a goal that the international community should pursue?” 95 percent of Germans and 85 percent of Japanese said “yes.” The other countries showed the same response, with 84 percent in China, 84 percent in France, 75 percent in Korea and 74 percent in the U.S.