Japanese Survey Shows Strong Support for Taiwan’s Independence
A recent survey in Japan has shown that 71% of Japanese people view Taiwan as an independent country and support establishing formal diplomatic relations between Japan and Taiwan. This survey was conducted by the Indo-Pacific Strategic Think-tank (IPST) in partnership with Sankei Shimbun, polling over 3,000 adults across eight major cities on September 21.
The survey revealed that only 8% of respondents believe Taiwan is part of China, while 20% are uncertain about its status. Regarding potential military conflict in the Taiwan Strait, 50% think war is unlikely, 23% believe conflict could occur, and 26% are neutral.
When asked about Japan’s role in a potential conflict, 46% support aiding Taiwan as allowed by law, 41% favor economic sanctions on China, and 12% oppose intervention. As for the United States’ involvement, 52% think the US would provide material support without direct involvement, 39% believe the US would send troops, and 8% think the US would not help.
In terms of regional closeness, 55% of respondents feel Japan is closest to Taiwan, compared to 15% for South Korea and 3.6% for China. Many respondents (33%) appreciate Taiwan for its sense of closeness to Japan.
Doubts Revealed
Taiwan’s Independence -: Taiwan is an island near China. Some people think it should be its own country, separate from China. This idea is called Taiwan’s independence.
Diplomatic ties -: Diplomatic ties mean official relationships between countries. When countries have diplomatic ties, they have embassies and talk to each other about important issues.
Indo-Pacific Strategic Think-tank -: A think-tank is a group of experts who study and give advice on specific topics. The Indo-Pacific Strategic Think-tank focuses on issues in the Indo-Pacific region, which includes countries like India, Japan, and Australia.
Sankei Shimbun -: Sankei Shimbun is a popular newspaper in Japan. It reports on news and events happening in Japan and around the world.
Military conflict -: Military conflict means fighting between countries using armies and weapons. People worry about military conflict when countries have disagreements that might lead to war.
Material support -: Material support means providing things like equipment, supplies, or money to help someone. In this context, it means helping Taiwan with resources if needed.