Majority of Japanese "Anxious About Foreign Invasion"... Russia Seen as Greatest Threat

Nikkei Annual Public Opinion Survey Results Announced
Russia, China, North Korea Perceived as Top Threats
"US-Japan Alliance Should Be Strengthened" 49%

It has been found that 83% of Japanese people feel anxious about attacks from other countries. Additionally, in the U.S.-Japan alliance, the response that "Japan's role should be expanded" outnumbered opposing answers, indicating public opinion in favor of strengthening defense capabilities.

According to a survey by Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) on the 25th (local time), 83% responded "yes" to the question, "Do you feel anxious that Japan might be attacked by another country?" In contrast, only 14% answered "no."

Regarding the intensity of threats, Russia, which was included in the survey for the first time, ranked highest at 90%, followed by China at 89%, similar to last year's 90%. Russia's invasion of Ukraine and repeated Chinese military exercises around Taiwan appear to have influenced these results. Notably, a missile launched by China fell into Japan's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in August last year.

Last November, a citizen in Tokyo, Japan, was watching news coverage related to North Korea's ballistic missile launch. [Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

The percentage of respondents who perceive North Korea as a threat rose to 87% compared to 83% last year. North Korea's missile launches reached a record high last year, increasing the threat level. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated in his policy speech at the regular Diet session on the 23rd, regarding North Korea, "The unprecedented frequency and nature of ballistic missile launches are absolutely unacceptable," and added, "We aim to comprehensively resolve all issues related to abductions, nuclear weapons, and missiles based on the 'Japan-North Korea Pyongyang Declaration,' to put an end to the unfortunate past and realize the normalization of Japan-North Korea diplomatic relations."

"Expand U.S.-Japan Alliance" Support at 49%... Public Opinion Forms for U.S. Cooperation and Defense Strengthening

On the 23rd (local time), Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida delivered the policy speech at the regular Diet session. [Image source=AP Yonhap News]

The response that Japan's role in the U.S.-Japan alliance should be "expanded" was 49%, surpassing the 46% who said it should not be expanded. This is the third consecutive year the survey has asked this question, and it is the first time that positive responses toward expanding Japan's role have outnumbered negative ones. Nikkei stated, "One background to this is that Japanese people have directly witnessed Russia's invasion of Ukraine." It further analyzed, "Due to the Ukraine invasion and the escalating Taiwan crisis, there seems to be a growing awareness of the need for strengthened cooperation with the United States and independent defense capabilities."

Nikkei conducts this public opinion survey once a year every autumn. This survey was conducted by mail from October to November last year. Nikkei Research randomly selected 1,663 voters aged 18 and over and obtained valid responses. The valid response rate was 55.4%.

Meanwhile, the Japanese government officially formalized securing "counterattack capabilities" and increasing defense spending through revisions of three security-related documents, including the National Security Strategy, at the end of last year. Although this survey was conducted before that, it reflects the trend of increasing public support for strengthening defense capabilities amid rising military tensions around Japan.