Over 60% of S. Korean university students say resolution of NK nuclear issue necessary for reunification: poll
Civic group representatives pay tribute to victims of Korean War in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, July 27. Yonhap
Over six out of 10 South Korean university students think that a resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue is necessary to achieve the reunification of the two Koreas, a survey showed Tuesday.
In the survey conducted by Seoul's foreign ministry, Chung-Ang University and the Hyundai Research Institute on 500 undergraduate and graduate students from Oct. 8-21, 63.2 percent of respondents considered a resolution of the North's nuclear problem as a prerequisite to reunification.
Only 18.6 percent of the respondents believed that the unification of the Koreas was a precondition to resolving Pyongyang's nuclear issue.
In the same survey, 28.2 percent also said the "complete denuclearization of North Korea" was the "most necessary" condition for a reunified Korean Peninsula, followed by the "improvement in North Korea's human rights" at 9.4 percent.
The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.38 percentage points with a 95 percent confidence level.
The foreign ministry said it will expand its unification-related activities based on the results of the survey and continue to seek ways to draw participation from the youth.
The two Koreas are technically in a state of war as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. (Yonhap)