72.8% of Koreans support S. Korea's nuclear weapon development

Nine out of 10 South Koreans believe it is impossible to denuclearize North Korea, according to a poll commissioned by the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies and conducted by Gallup Korea. The institute released the results of the ‘Perception of the North Korean Nuclear Crisis and Security Situation’ poll on Monday. The survey was conducted from December 15 of last year to January 10 of this year by the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies, which commissioned Korea Gallup to conduct door-to-door interviews with 1,043 adults aged 18 and older.

When asked, ‘Do you think it is possible to denuclearize North Korea given Kim Jong Un's declaration not to abandon nuclear weapons?’ 49.7% and 41.4% responded with ‘not possible’ and ‘not at all possible,’ respectively. Meanwhile, 91.1% of respondents expressed pessimism about denuclearization, marking an increase from 77.6% last year.

To the question, ‘Do you think the United States would use its nuclear deterrent in the event of an emergency on the Korean Peninsula, even at the risk of the U.S. being attacked?’ 60.8% responded with ‘no.’ "Rather than indicating a decline in trust in the U.S., this trend appears to be a result of North Korea's advanced nuclear weapons programs and its expanded provocative posture," the institute stated.

72.8% of respondents believe that South Korea should develop its own nuclear weapons, a percentage lower than last year's (76.6%) but still relatively high. The survey’s sampling error was ±3.0 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence interval.


Kyu-Jin Shin newjin@donga.com