Koreans' Favorability Toward Japan Rises... But 'Japan's Contribution to Peace' Gets a 'Not Sure' Response

Reflecting Recent Improvement in Korea-Japan Relations
Russia Identified as a Threat to World Peace

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seung-woo] A public opinion survey conducted by a Japanese media organization revealed that the favorability and interest of Koreans toward Japan have significantly increased.

The Japan Public Interest Incorporated Foundation Newspaper and Communications Survey Association announced on the 19th that "the proportion of Koreans who feel favorability and interest toward Japan has noticeably risen" according to the 'Media on Japan' survey results. The survey was conducted last November to December among approximately 1,000 people each in six countries: Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, China, and Thailand.

According to the Newspaper and Communications Survey Association, the proportion of Koreans with a favorable view of Japan was 39.9%, an increase of 8.7 percentage points compared to the survey in December 2021. This is the highest figure since the related survey began in 2015.

A survey official analyzed through local media that "the increase in Koreans visiting Japan and the atmosphere of improving Korea-Japan relations following the inauguration of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration are reflected in the results."

The proportion of Koreans interested in news related to Japan also rose by 9.9 percentage points from the previous survey to 74.4%. This is the highest figure among the six countries surveyed.

When asked about the content Koreans expect from Japanese-related news, the top answer was science and technology (80.7%). This was followed by politics, economy, and diplomatic policies (74.5%), international cooperation and peacekeeping activities (73.9%), tourism information (59.5%), and history and culture (58.7%).

However, Koreans were generally negative in response to the question, "Is Japan contributing to peace and security in East Asia?" Among all respondents, 61.8% answered "not contributing."

Meanwhile, the countries with the highest favorability among Koreans were the United States (81.2%), the United Kingdom (76.4%), France (72.9%), Thailand (56.5%), Japan and China (24.5%), and Russia (16.2%), in that order. Additionally, Russia (31.5%) was identified as the country posing the greatest threat to world peace.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.