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- Date
- May 31, 2017
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- 2
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- Ms Heesun Kim
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* For Immediate Release
Asan Institute Releases the Report of Six Nations Survey with 6 other institutions from Australia, China, Japan, India and Indonesia
SEOUL, May 31, 2017 – The Asan Institute for Policy Studies (http://en.asaninst.org/) presents “The Asian Research Network: The Six Nations Survey” in coordination with the United States Studies Center (University of Sydney), Perth USAsia Centre (University of Western Australia), the Shanghai Institute for International Studies, Canon Institute for Global Studies, Brookings India, and FPCI (Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia).
The report reveals a number of significant findings about public opinion on regional security and economic issues. Among the topics covered include public attitudes about great power relations, perceived threat, and regional challenges for cooperation. Some interesting results include the following:
South Korean attitudes towards China has deteriorated since 2015. 60% of South Koreans see Chinese influence on South Korea as negative (neutral 25%, positive 15%). This is a significant departure from 2015 when 47% of respondents viewed China’s influence as positive (neutral 32%, negative 21%).
When asked about China’s influence on the Asia-Pacific region, 49% of the survey respondents stated that it does more harm than good. Those who stated that China’s influence on the region did “about the same amount of good and harm” and “more good than harm” were 39% and 13%, respectively. In 2015, 65% of the respondents stated that China did “about the same amount of good and harm” (“more good than harm” 23%, “more harm than good” 12%).
85% of survey respondents assess the current state of South Korean national security as negative (positive 15%). Also, the outlook on inter-Korean relations under the Trump administration is pessimistic with 72% expecting it to be “bad” or “very bad” (“good” 25%, “very good” 2%).
North Korea is seen as the most likely source of conflict in the region for respondents from South Korea (44%), Australia (51%), Japan (59%), and Indonesia (59%). 24% of Chinese stated that Japan is the greatest security risk while 35% of Indians view China as the most likely source of conflict in the region.
44% of South Koreans stated that North Korea is the most likely source of conflict in the region. 29% see China as the second greatest security risk. This figure was significantly lower in 2015 (8%). 19% of Chinese respondents saw South Korea as the most likely source of conflict in the region. This figure was significantly lower in 2015 (2%).
The sample size of the South Korean survey was 757 people, aged 19 and over. The margin of error is ±3.6% at 95% confidence level. The survey was conducted by Ipsos which employed an online survey to collect the data during February 23- March 19, 2017.
Research Team from the Asan Institute for Policy Study includes:
Dr. J. James KIM, Research Fellow (jjkim@asaninst.org)
Mr. KANG Chungku, Senior Research Associate (ckkang@asaninst.org)
About the Asan Institute for Policy Studies
The Asan Institute for Policy Studies (http://en.asaninst.org/) is an independent think tank that provides innovative policy solutions and spearheads public discourse on the core issues in Korea, East Asia, and the world. Our goal is to assist policymakers to make better informed and mutually beneficial policy decisions. The Asan Institute, established in 2008, has successfully hosted a series of international conferences including the Asan Plenum, the Asan China Forum and the Asan Nuclear Forum. It has also published a number of books, such as China’s Foreign Policy, Japan In Crisis, and The Arab Spring. The institute has been ranked among the world’s top 100 think tanks by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) in 2015.