75% of Japanese see growing nuclear threat, yet 59% want three non-nuclear principles kept

As the Japanese government moves to revise its three core security documents by year's end, the question of whether to revisit the country's three non-nuclear principles has emerged as a flashpoint — and a new poll shows roughly six in 10 Japanese favor keeping the principles intact. Three-quarters of respondents said they believe the global risk posed by nuclear weapons is growing.

According to NHK, a poll conducted Thursday through Sunday among 1,205 people aged 18 and older found that 59 percent said the three non-nuclear principles "should be upheld." Some 33 percent said they "should be reviewed."

The three non-nuclear principles are Japan's long-standing nuclear policy of not possessing, not manufacturing and not permitting the introduction of nuclear weapons. First declared in the National Assembly in 1967 by then-Prime Minister Sato Eisaku, the principles have been regarded as a national tenet for more than half a century.

In recent years, however, voices within parts of Japan's political establishment have called for revisiting particularly the third principle — the ban on introducing nuclear weapons into Japanese territory. Proponents argue that as the security environment in East Asia deteriorates, amid China's military buildup and North Korea's nuclear and missile development, taboos around discussing extended deterrence under the US nuclear umbrella must be lifted to strengthen its effectiveness.

The debate over the three non-nuclear principles has drawn heightened attention as it intersects with the government's broader security policy overhaul. Tokyo plans to revise the three so-called security documents — the National Security Strategy, the National Defense Strategy and the Defense Buildup Plan — before the end of the year, raising questions about how the principles will be addressed in the updated texts.

The survey found that while Japanese citizens take the international nuclear threat seriously, they remain comparatively cautious about altering the three non-nuclear principles.

When asked whether the global risk from nuclear weapons is rising, 34 percent said it is "rising significantly" and 41 percent said it is "rising to some extent" — meaning 75 percent of all respondents judged that nuclear risks are increasing.

With a majority still backing the principles even as anxiety over nuclear threats grows, the debate over Japan's nuclear policy is likely to continue. The poll reflects two competing currents in Japanese public opinion: demands to strengthen deterrence in response to a deteriorating security environment, and support for preserving the three non-nuclear principles as a defining symbol of postwar Japan's nuclear stance.