Nearly 60 percent of Japanese agreed with the idea of their country offering logistical support to the US if the US had to assist Taiwan militarily in a showdown with China, according to the results of a Japanese poll released yesterday.
In the survey conducted by the Japanese Asahi Shimbun daily on Dec. 4 and Dec. 5, 57 percent of the 3,000 respondents said Japan’s self-defense forces should provide transportation and other logistical support to the US military if war were to break out in the Taiwan Strait.
Only 30 percent of respondents opposed the idea.
In a parallel poll conducted in the US by Harris Interactive for the newspaper from Dec. 2 to Dec. 6, for the same question, 65 percent of the 1,009 respondents said Japanese self-defense forces should assist the US logistically, while 23 percent said there was no such need.
MILITARY THREAT
The Asahi survey in Japan also found that an increasing number of Japanese feel that China’s military poses a threat to their country. About 32 percent of respondents felt that way in this year’s poll, up from 13 percent in 2005 and 8 percent in 2001.
North Korea was perceived as Japan’s biggest military threat, with almost half (49 percent) of the respondents citing it as such.
About 72 percent of the Japanese respondents felt Japan should strengthen cooperation with the US, and 61 percent of the Americans felt their country should do the same with Japan, according to the surveys.
The polls also found that 51 percent of the Japanese respondents and 55 percent of the Americans surveyed thought their countries should beef up cooperation with China.
On which country is more -important to the Japanese — China or the US — more than two-thirds (68 percent) of Japanese said the US, compared with a mere 15 percent who pointed to China.
However, when Americans were asked which country was more important to them, half of the US respondents named China and only 33 percent said Japan.
As many as 78 percent of Japanese respondents said the -Japan-US security treaty should be maintained and 68 percent of the Americans agreed.
With China boosting its military capability, 48 percent of those surveyed in Japan said their country should increase its military presence in its southwestern islands to respond to the threat, while 36 percent opposed the suggestion.
MAKING WAVES: China’s maritime militia could become a nontraditional threat in war, clogging up shipping lanes to prevent US or Japanese intervention, a report said About 1,900 Chinese ships flying flags of convenience and fishing vessels that participated in China’s military exercises around Taiwan last month and in January last year have been listed for monitoring, Coast Guard Administration (CGA) Deputy Director-General Hsieh Ching-chin (謝慶欽) said yesterday. Following amendments to the Commercial Port Act (商港法) and the Law of Ships (船舶法) last month, the CGA can designate possible berthing areas or deny ports of call for vessels suspected of loitering around areas where undersea cables can be accessed, Oceans Affairs Council Minister Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said. The list of suspected ships, originally 300, had risen to about
DAREDEVIL: Honnold said it had always been a dream of his to climb Taipei 101, while a Netflix producer said the skyscraper was ‘a real icon of this country’ US climber Alex Honnold yesterday took on Taiwan’s tallest building, becoming the first person to scale Taipei 101 without a rope, harness or safety net. Hundreds of spectators gathered at the base of the 101-story skyscraper to watch Honnold, 40, embark on his daredevil feat, which was also broadcast live on Netflix. Dressed in a red T-shirt and yellow custom-made climbing shoes, Honnold swiftly moved up the southeast face of the glass and steel building. At one point, he stepped onto a platform midway up to wave down at fans and onlookers who were taking photos. People watching from inside
Japan’s strategic alliance with the US would collapse if Tokyo were to turn away from a conflict in Taiwan, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said yesterday, but distanced herself from previous comments that suggested a possible military response in such an event. Takaichi expressed her latest views on a nationally broadcast TV program late on Monday, where an opposition party leader criticized her for igniting tensions with China with the earlier remarks. Ties between Japan and China have sunk to the worst level in years after Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could bring about a Japanese
STREAMLINED: The dedicated funding would allow the US to transfer equipment to Taiwan when needed and order upgraded replacements for stockpiles, a source said The US House of Representatives on Thursday passed a defense appropriations bill totaling US$838.7 billion, of which US$1 billion is to be allocated to reinforcing security cooperation with Taiwan and US$150 million to replace defense articles provided to the nation. These are part of the Consolidated Appropriation Act, which the US House yesterday passed with 341 votes in favor and 88 against. The act must be passed by the US Senate before Friday next week to avoid another government shutdown. The US House Committee on Appropriations on Monday unveiled the act, saying that it allocates US$1 billion for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative
RSS