From a Telephone Survey on Security
March 2011
In 2010, a public opinion survey was conducted in line with a television program reviewing the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty, which marked its 50th anniversary of the revision. In September, Japan saw an incident near the Senkaku Islands where a Chinese fishing vessel collided with Japanese patrol boats, and in November, just before we conducted the survey, North Korea fired on Yeonpyeong Island of South Korea. The author analyzed what the Japanese people of today think about security issues.
As for the level of uneasiness respondents feel about Japan’s security being threatened in the current international circumstances, nearly half of them feel “rather uneasy” and those feeling “uneasy,” including “rather uneasy,” account for more than 80%. Those who feel “uneasy” about “the situation in the Korean Peninsula” and “Chinese military buildup and/or maritime activities” also account for more than 80%, respectively.
When asked about the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty itself, more than 70% of the respondents evaluate it positively, with those considering the Treaty “helpful” (31%) and “rather helpful” (40%) combined.
Regarding what the Treaty has brought about, more than 70% think “Japan’s security has been protected” and nearly 60% think “it has contributed to peace in the Asia-Pacific region.” Meanwhile, those pointing out “Japan’s shouldering severe burdens of U.S. military bases in Japan” also account for more than 70%, and more than 60% think, ”the treaty forced Japan to play a part in the U.S. international strategy” and/or “it has prevented Japan from conducting its own diplomacy.
As for the Japan-U.S. alliance in the future, more than 40% want it “as it is.” Nearly 30% think “the alliance should be strengthened.” When asked about the ideal future of the U.S. military presence in Japan, 45% prefer to “keep the same level as it is” while 39% prefer to “reduce it.” Different perceptions on the future of the U.S. military presence in Japan were affected by different evaluations on whether the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty is “helpful” or not.
Although many of the respondents prefer the status quo regarding the Japan-U.S. alliance, when asked how the future security framework should be, more than 50% support “the creation of an international security framework focusing on the relations with multiple Asian countries,” far outnumbering those who think “Japan’s security should be protected based on the Japan-U.S. alliance” (a little under 20%).
However, 72% of those supporting “the creation of an international security framework” think the Japan-U.S. alliance should be “maintained and strengthened,” which indicates they are not necessarily against the Japan-U.S. alliance.