Majority supports development of South's own nukes

An illustration using flags of the two Koreas. [KIM JI-YOON]

More South Koreans want the South to develop its own nuclear weapons to deter nuclear and missile threats from the North, according to a recent survey by the Chey Institute.

A total of 76.6 percent of 1,000 South Koreans surveyed said Seoul should have its own nukes, the Seoul-based think tank announced Monday.

That was more than triple the number of respondents who said South Korea didn't need an independent nuclear arsenal, or 23.4 percent.

Domestic opinion surveys over the years have found that a majority of South Koreans support either the redeployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons to the South or the development of an independent nuclear deterrent.

South Korea is a signatory to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, meaning it has agreed not to develop its own nuclear weapons.

According to a recent survey by the Seoul National University Asia Center and the JoongAng Ilbo, coordinated through Hankook Research, the growing call for South Korea to develop its own nuclear weapons is fueled by public skepticism that the United States would actually use its nuclear deterrent if a war were to break out on the Korean Peninsula.

A total of 58.1 percent of the survey's respondents said that if the United States cannot extend its nuclear umbrella to South Korea or redeploy tactical nuclear weapons to the country, the South should seek its own nuclear weapons. Some 31.6 percent disagreed.

The louder calls for South Korea’s own nuclear weapons are also likely tied with a growing belief that the North will never give up its nuclear weapons. A total of 77.6 percent of those surveyed by the Chey Institute said the denuclearization of North Korea is impossible.

North Korea fired a record number of over 90 ballistic and other missiles last year, including an intercontinental ballistic missile in November.

Some 78.6 percent of the respondents to the Chey Institute's survey said North Korea will very likely conduct another nuclear test, its seventh. The North's last nuclear test was 2017.

Meanwhile, 71.9 percent of respondents said security cooperation between South Korea, the United States and Japan was possible, suggesting support for stronger trilateral cooperation to deal with North Korean threats.

The survey also indicated growing public distrust of China’s role in ending North Korea's nuclear program.

A total of 64.1 percent of respondents said China will not contribute to the denuclearization of North Korea, whereas 35.9 percent said China could contribute.

As for Korean reunification, 55.1 percent predicted that China would obstruct the reunification of the two Koreas, whereas 10.2 percent said China could positively contribute.

As for whether the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), a U.S. missile defense system, should continue to be deployed in South Korea, 51 percent of respondents said yes, while 18.9 percent said no. Some 30.1 percent said they don’t know.

The survey by the Chey Institute was conducted between Nov. 28 and Dec. 16 last year. All 1,000 respondents were over 18 and interviewed in person.

BY KANG TAE-HWA, ESTHER CHUNG [chung.juhee@joongang.co.kr]