71％ in favor of strengthening defense capabilities
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks at the government’s expert panel to comprehensively discuss national defense capabilities in Tokyo on Friday.
15:17 JST, October 3, 2022
Results of a nationwide opinion poll conducted by The Yomiuri Shimbun show that 71% of respondents were in favor of Japan strengthening its defense capabilities, far more than the 21% who were opposed to any measures.
In similar polling conducted both by telephone and mail since 2017, support for defense increases has remained in the 60-70% range.
When those who answered “in favor” of increased defense were asked about how to fund the measures, 43% of respondents answered “issuing government bonds,” the most popular choice, followed by 30% who answered “cutting other budgets such as social security” and “raising taxes” by 20%.
Across three age groups, slightly over 40% of all respondents chose “issuing government bonds” as the best funding method. However, the results for “cutting other budgets, such as social security,” depended on the age of the respondents: 38% of those aged 18-39, 28% of those aged 40-59, and 24% of those aged 60 and older.
At the government’s expert panel to comprehensively discuss the increase of national defense capabilities, one of the points of contention is the financial resources required.
