The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
  • Login
  • Register
  • Login
  • Register
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
  • 1

    Woman killed in stopped car struck by bus on highway

  • 3

    Koreans wish to work less than 40 hours per week: survey

  • 5

    Apple Pay's imminent launch in Korea draws mixed responses

  • 7

    ANALYSISYoon-Kishida summit may 'raise ceiling' for trilateral cooperation with US: expert

  • 9

    Video footage highlights details of stepmother's fatal abuse of 12-year-old

  • 11

    Korea sets record of half million economically inactive youth

  • 13

    Land minister fortifies city building cooperation with Indonesia

  • 15

    UBS eyeing swoop for Credit Suisse, sources say, amid fears of banking contagion

  • 17

    Could Doosan Robotics be valued at 1 trillion won in IPO?

  • 19

    Whisky sales at E-Mart outlets exceed soju sales in Jan.-Feb. period

  • 2

    Yoon faces strong political backlash after Tokyo summit

  • 4

    Mask mandate on public transportation to end Monday

  • 6

    Centre Pompidou's Korean branch to open in 63 Building

  • 8

    New EU trade policies unnerve Korean firms

  • 10

    INTERVIEWNorth Korean-born chef delights Southerners' taste buds, breaks down cultural barriers

  • 12

    North Korea fires ballistic missile as US bombers join drills

  • 14

    Actor Yoo Ah-in to appear for questioning Friday over alleged drug use

  • 16

    Trump expects to be arrested Tuesday as DA eyes charges

  • 18

    Commuters still wear masks despite end of mask mandate on public transportation

  • 20

    Bitcoin extends super-rally amid SVB fiasco

Close scrollclosebutton

Close for 24 hours

Open
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
Tue, March 21, 2023 | 09:27
Defense
Over 76% of South Koreans support development of nuclear weapons
Posted : 2023-01-30 17:08
Updated : 2023-01-31 16:19
Jung Min-ho
Print PreviewPrint Preview
Font Size UpFont Size Up
Font Size DownFont Size Down
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • kakaolink
  • whatsapp
  • reddit
  • mailto
  • link
A photo showing North Korea's missile launch is displayed at the Unification Observation Post in Paju near the inter-Korean border, Jan. 27. More than 76 percent of people in South Korea support the idea of arming their country with nuclear weapons to counter growing security threats from North Korea, a new study showed Monday. AP-Yonhap
A photo showing North Korea's missile launch is displayed at the Unification Observation Post in Paju near the inter-Korean border, Jan. 27. More than 76 percent of people in South Korea support the idea of arming their country with nuclear weapons to counter growing security threats from North Korea, a new study showed Monday. AP-Yonhap

Survey suggests widespread skepticism over denuclearization of North Korea

By Jung Min-ho

Over 76 percent of people in South Korea support the idea of arming their country with its own nuclear weapons to counter growing security threats from North Korea, a new study showed.

According to the results of a survey released Monday by the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies, a think tank, 60.7 percent of the respondents said they believe their country is somewhat in need of developing its own nuclear weapons, while 15.9 percent said it is very much in need.

Only 3.1 percent said the country is in no need of such weapons, while 20.3 percent said the need is low.

The level of approval measured for nuclear weapons is higher than the numbers shown in other studies in recent years, including a survey by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs (71 percent) and another one by the Asan Institute for Policy Studies (70.2 percent).

The latest research conducted by Gallup Korea between Nov. 28 and Dec. 26, based on one-on-one interviews with 1,000 people, shows that there is widespread skepticism over the possibility of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula.

While 56.4 percent of respondents said they think the denuclearization of North Korea is impossible, 21.2 percent said it is nearly impossible. Only 1.9 percent said it is very likely.

A photo showing North Korea's missile launch is displayed at the Unification Observation Post in Paju near the inter-Korean border, Jan. 27. More than 76 percent of people in South Korea support the idea of arming their country with nuclear weapons to counter growing security threats from North Korea, a new study showed Monday. AP-Yonhap
Graphic by Cho Sang-won

Intelligence agencies in Seoul and Washington say North Korea has completed preparations for its first nuclear weapons test since 2017. Nearly 79 percent of the respondents said they believe the North will proceed with the test.

In recent years, North Korea stepped up efforts to develop long-range nuclear weapons to undermine joint U.S.-South Korean defense systems. Asked whether they think the U.S. would be willing to take the risk of a nuclear war with the North to protect the South, 51.3 percent of respondents said that they somewhat or strongly believe so.

The study also shows a high approval rating of 71.9 percent for trilateral security cooperation (with the U.S. and Japan). This comes despite more than half of the respondents seeing Japan unfavorably, possibly due to diplomatic friction over the renewed wartime forced labor issue that occurred during Japan's colonial rule over the peninsula (1910-45).

A photo showing North Korea's missile launch is displayed at the Unification Observation Post in Paju near the inter-Korean border, Jan. 27. More than 76 percent of people in South Korea support the idea of arming their country with nuclear weapons to counter growing security threats from North Korea, a new study showed Monday. AP-Yonhap
Park In-kook, president of the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies, speaks during a media conference at the Press Center in central Seoul, Monday. Yonhap

The new Cold War climate that is forming, highlighted by Moscow's war in Ukraine and China and Russia's refusal to impose more sanctions on North Korea at the U.N Security Council, may have affected the South Korean public's opinion toward more defense cooperation with Japan, said Park In-kook, president of the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies.

"The threats from North Korea have become ever more real, and news about Russia's war in Ukraine have raised fears of nuclear wars," Park said. "After years of cooperation at the U.N. Security Council, China and Russia started in 2022 to veto attempts to sanction the North for its weapons tests."

More than 64 percent of the respondents said they believe Beijing would make little or no contribution to the denuclearization of North Korea, with over half (55.1 percent) viewing China as a threat rather than a helpful country (10.2 percent) regarding the reunification of the two Koreas.

Earlier this month, President Yoon Suk Yeol said he would not rule out the possibility of the redeployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea or developing its own nuclear weapons.

The bipartisan support for the idea ― exceeding the current approval rating of the president (lower than 40 percent) ― may pressure the government to take steps to materialize it if the North continues to raise tensions with its weapons tests, Park said.

Park, who attended several Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) meetings while working in the government, also said South Korea would be able to leave the pact legally if it wished to, given the serious, tangible level of threats posed by North Korea. Article 10 of the NPT allows members to withdraw if adherence to the treaty threatens a member's security.


Emailmj6c2@koreatimes.co.kr Article ListMore articles by this reporter
 
LG Group
Top 10 Stories
1Woman killed in stopped car struck by bus on highway Woman killed in stopped car struck by bus on highway
2[INTERVIEW] North Korean-born chef delights Southerners' taste buds, breaks down cultural barriers INTERVIEWNorth Korean-born chef delights Southerners' taste buds, breaks down cultural barriers
3Korea sets record of half million economically inactive youth Korea sets record of half million economically inactive youth
4Commuters still wear masks despite end of mask mandate on public transportation Commuters still wear masks despite end of mask mandate on public transportation
5KAIST student becomes first Korean recipient of Apple Scholars fellowship KAIST student becomes first Korean recipient of Apple Scholars fellowship
6Public officials reluctant to dine with coworkers Public officials reluctant to dine with coworkers
7COVID-hit Myeong-dong bounces back as tourists return COVID-hit Myeong-dong bounces back as tourists return
8Brides in early 40s outnumber those in early 20s Brides in early 40s outnumber those in early 20s
9[Analysis] Yoon-Kishida meeting raises expectations of 3-way summit with China AnalysisYoon-Kishida meeting raises expectations of 3-way summit with China
10OTT service providers negatively impacted by illegal streaming website OTT service providers negatively impacted by illegal streaming website
Top 5 Entertainment News
1Centre Pompidou's Korean branch to open in 63 Building Centre Pompidou's Korean branch to open in 63 Building
2Celebrities head back abroad to film K-food reality shows Celebrities head back abroad to film K-food reality shows
3Park Sung-woong talks about filming 'Woong Nam' with comedian-turned-director Park Sung-woong talks about filming 'Woong Nam' with comedian-turned-director
4Kwon Sang-woo's new series to stream on Disney+ this year Kwon Sang-woo's new series to stream on Disney+ this year
5From sky to deserted islands, two artists' documentation of nature adds surreal touch to reality From sky to deserted islands, two artists' documentation of nature adds surreal touch to reality
DARKROOM
  • Turkey-Syria earthquake

    Turkey-Syria earthquake

  • Nepal plane crash

    Nepal plane crash

  • Brazil capital uprising

    Brazil capital uprising

  • Happy New Year 2023

    Happy New Year 2023

  • World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

    World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

CEO & Publisher : Oh Young-jin
Digital News Email : webmaster@koreatimes.co.kr
Tel : 02-724-2114
Online newspaper registration No : 서울,아52844
Date of registration : 2020.02.05
Masthead : The Korea Times
Copyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.
  • About Us
  • Introduction
  • History
  • Contact Us
  • Products & Services
  • Subscribe
  • E-paper
  • RSS Service
  • Content Sales
  • Site Map
  • Policy
  • Code of Ethics
  • Ombudsman
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Service
  • Copyright Policy
  • Family Site
  • Hankook Ilbo
  • Dongwha Group