Japanese are more likely to view China as a major threat than Taiwanese, although both sides agree that Beijing’s power and influence are the most concerning geopolitical hazard, a Pew Research Center poll showed on Tuesday.
From June 2 to Sept. 17, Pew researchers polled respondents in Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong on perceived threats posed by China, the US, Russia and North Korea.
China’s power and influence was considered the greatest threat above North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, or US or Russian influence, the report said.
Japanese respondents showed the most concern over China, with 76 percent calling it a “major threat” compared with 66 percent in Taiwan and 64 percent in South Korea, it said.
In Hong Kong the rate was 48 percent, with 29 percent not considering Chinese influence a threat, it said.
This year’s figure among Japanese is comparable to the 74 percent recorded during tensions in waters west of Japan in 2013, Pew said, but added that respondents in South Korea were less skeptical of China than they were a decade ago, when 76 percent said its influence posed a major threat.
Views of China’s threat level in Taiwan correlated with age and party affiliation, researchers said.
People younger than 35 in Taiwan and Hong Kong were more likely to say China as a major threat, the report said.
Supporters of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) were also more likely to think so at 78 percent than Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) supporters at 59 percent, it said.
Japanese and South Korea respondents named North Korea’s nuclear weapons program as a major threat at rates of 73 and 65 percent respectively, while the figure was only 33 percent in Taiwan, it added.
In Japan, 71 percent of respondents named Russian influence as a major threat, while the figure was under half in the other regions, it said.
Only Japan had a majority who considered US power and influence to be a major threat at 53 percent, compared with 45 percent in Taiwan and South Korea, and 37 percent in Hong Kong, although 40 percent of Hong Kong respondents considered it a “minor threat,” the poll showed.
KMT supporters were more likely to view the US as a major threat at 63 percent, compared with 34 percent of DPP supporters, the report said.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
TRAGEDY STRIKES TAIPEI: The suspect died after falling off a building after he threw smoke grenades into Taipei Main Station and went on a killing spree in Zhongshan A 27-year-old suspect allegedly threw smoke grenades in Taipei Main Station and then proceeded to Zhongshan MRT Station in a random killing spree that resulted in the death of the suspect and two other civilians, and seven injured, including one in critical condition, as of press time last night. The suspect, identified as a man surnamed Chang Wen (張文), allegedly began the attack at Taipei Main Station, the Taipei Fire Department said, adding that it received a report at 5:24pm that smoke grenades had been thrown in the station. One man in his 50s was rushed to hospital after a cardiac arrest
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
ON ALERT: Taiwan’s partners would issue warnings if China attempted to use Interpol to target Taiwanese, and the global body has mechanisms to prevent it, an official said China has stationed two to four people specializing in Taiwan affairs at its embassies in several democratic countries to monitor and harass Taiwanese, actions that the host nations would not tolerate, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said yesterday. Tsai made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, which asked him and Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) to report on potential conflicts in the Taiwan Strait and military preparedness. Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) expressed concern that Beijing has posted personnel from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office to its
RSS