No. of Japanese who feel friendly toward China drop to record low 20%

Sunday 19th December, 04:56 AM JST

TOKYO —

The number of Japanese people who feel friendly towards China dropped to a record low 20% in a poll conducted by the Japanese government, down 18.5 percentage points from the previous survey last year, the Cabinet Office said Saturday.

Those who said they do not have friendly feelings, meanwhile, jumped 19.3 points to 77.8%, a record high since the first survey in 1978, according to the public opinion survey on foreign affairs.

The Foreign Ministry said, ‘‘Heightened tension between Japan and China as a result of a Chinese trawler’s collisions (with Japanese patrol boats) in September had a major impact on national sentiment.’’ The survey was conducted in October.

The result apparently reflected Japanese sentiments about China’s hard-line approach in insisting on sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands, controlled by Japan, and a series of anti-Japan demonstrations in China following the collisions near the islands and the subsequent arrest of the trawler captain by Japan.

Questionnaires were given to 3,000 adults throughout the country with 65.1% providing replies.

Asked if Japan and China maintain ‘‘good’’ relations, those replying in the affirmative plunged to 8.3% from 38.5%, also the lowest since 1986 when this question was first posed in a similar survey.

Those who do not perceive relations as good surged to 88.6% from 55.2%.

On Japan’s relations with the United States, those who do not think they are good rose 10.1 points to 24.5%. The result may reflect shaken relations as a result of the poor handling of the proposed relocation of a U.S. Marine base by the government of Yukio Hatoyama, who eventually stepped down to be replaced as prime minister by Kan Naoto.

Figures for Russia remain almost unchanged but could have been different if the survey had been conducted after Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s visit to a Russian-controlled island claimed by Japan on Nov 1, which stirred nationalist sentiment in Japan.

Those who held friendly feelings towards India increased 9 points to 38.6%. Figures for South Korea also stayed almost the same.

On North Korea, people showed increased interest in the leadership succession, while interest in other issues waned. Where multiple replies were allowed, 50.7%, up 8.5 points, noted interest in Pyongyang’s political situation, while 68.4, down 8.4%, cited its nuclear programs.

A record 83.2% expressed a desire to see Japan’s accession to permanent membership at the United Nations Security Council.