A majority of Japanese feel friendly toward Taiwan, with almost half of respondents in a poll saying that they want to visit the country after COVID-19 travel curbs are eased, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan said yesterday.
The office said that 75.9 percent of respondents said they feel friendly toward Taiwan, citing as reasons the friendliness and politeness of Taiwanese, the long history of ties between the two nations, and the strength of bilateral trade.
More than one-quarter of respondents — 26.4 percent — said they had traveled to Taiwan, while 47.8 percent said they would like to once international travel resumes, the office said.
Photo: Lin Tsuei-yi, Taipei Times
Regarding Taiwan-Japan relations, 71.4 percent of respondents said they are happy with the relationship, while 59.6 percent said they expect the ties to get a boost in the future, the office said.
The poll showed that 64.8 percent of respondents described Taiwan as “trustworthy,” citing as reasons Taiwan’s attitude toward Japan, shared democratic values and its peacefulness, it said.
Asked to choose the most friendly country in Asia, 46.6 percent of respondents chose Taiwan, 15.8 percent chose South Korea, 12.5 percent chose Singapore and 3 percent chose China, it said.
The poll showed that 65.1 percent of respondents agreed with Taipei’s assessment that trade between the two nations would get a boost if Taiwan joins the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, it said.
Asked to choose which Taiwan-related issue is the most important to Japan, 40.7 percent said the country is most affected by the situation across the Taiwan Strait, while 8.2 percent cited fishery disputes and 6.8 cited economic competition, the office said.
Another 24.4 percent said there are no problems between Taiwan and Japan, it said.
Asked to select Taiwanese fruits they want to buy, 57.6 percent of respondents chose bananas, 57 percent chose pineapples and 44.2 percent chose mangoes, it said.
The office has since 2016 commissioned the Japan-based Central Research Services to conduct the annual survey on Japanese perception of Taiwan. This year’s poll utilized telephone interviews and Internet-based questionnaires, collecting responses from 1,000 Japanese aged 20 to 89.
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