Two in 3 South Koreans support nuclear armament; majority oppose military academy merger: Gallup

Two in three South Koreans support the country developing its own nuclear weapons, according to a poll released Friday, while more than half oppose a government plan to merge the three military service academies.

In a Gallup Korea survey conducted Tuesday through Thursday among 1,001 adults aged 18 and older nationwide, 65 percent of respondents said they support South Korea acquiring nuclear weapons, while 30 percent were opposed. The poll carries a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level, with a contact rate of 44.5 percent and a response rate of 9.5 percent.

Support for nuclear armament crossed party lines, exceeding a majority among all political affiliations. Among People Power Party supporters, 78 percent backed nuclear weapons, while 60 percent of Democratic Party of Korea supporters also favored acquisition. Even among those with no party affiliation, 64 percent were in favor and 28 percent opposed — a wide margin in support.

On the Defense Ministry's proposal to consolidate the Army, Navy and Air Force academies into a single national military academy, negative sentiment prevailed. Some 58 percent said the academies should not be merged, while only 30 percent favored consolidation. The remaining 11 percent said they did not know or declined to answer.

The breakdown by political affiliation showed a sharp divide: 54 percent of Democratic Party supporters backed the merger, while 85 percent of People Power Party supporters and 70 percent of independents opposed it.

On wartime operational control, 46 percent said the transfer should be completed within President Lee Jae-myung's term, while 41 percent said it should be delayed.

By ideological leaning, 74 percent of self-identified progressives supported completing the transfer within Lee's term, compared with just 27 percent of conservatives.

Among moderates, those favoring transfer within the term (48 percent) edged out those preferring a delay (43 percent), a difference within the margin of error.

Asked to compare the military capabilities of the two Koreas, 70 percent of respondents said South Korea's military is superior. Some 21 percent said North Korea's forces are stronger, 3 percent said the two are roughly equal, and 6 percent offered no opinion.

On the likelihood of North Korea actually starting a war, 39 percent said they considered it a real possibility. By age group, respondents in their late teens and 20s (54 percent) and those in their 30s (53 percent) were most likely to view a North Korean attack as plausible, while those in their 40s were the least concerned at 29 percent.

The survey was conducted via telephone interviews using randomly selected virtual mobile numbers. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level, with a contact rate of 44.5 percent and a response rate of 9.5 percent.