These poll numbers were released earlier today by Rasmussen Reports -- "an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information."
47% Say U.S. Should Aid South Korea Militarily
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
As the saber-rattling increases on the Korean Peninsula, 47% of U.S. voters think the United States should provide military assistance to South Korea if it is attacked by its Communist neighbor to the north.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that only 25% oppose U.S. military assistance to South Korea if it is attacked by North Korea, but another 28% are undecided.
Fifty-six percent (56%) say it is at least somewhat likely there will be a war between the two Koreas in the near future, but only 14% say it's Very Likely. Twenty-nine percent (29%) say war between North Korea and South Korea is not very or not at all likely any time soon.
These findings are little changed from a year ago when tensions between the two countries last heightened.
The United States now has roughly 30,000 military personnel stationed in South Korea, mostly U.S. Army troops. Tensions have been mounting in recent days over charges that North Korea sank a South Korean naval vessel, and the Obama administration is pushing for United Nations action against North Korea. However, U.S. voters have little confidence that the UN will take effective action against North Korea.
The survey of 1,000 Likely U.S. Voters was conducted on May 24-25, 2010 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC . See methodology .
Voters have little question which side they're on. Sixty-four percent (64%) view South Korea as an ally of the United States. Just four percent (4%) see South Korea as an enemy, while 22% rate it as somewhere in between the two.
By contrast, 66% say North Korea is an enemy of the United States. Two percent (2%) view North Korea as an ally, and 21% place it somewhere in between.
Still, Iran remains at the top of the list of countries seen as the biggest threats to U.S. national security , with China second and North Korea third.
Seventy-five percent (75%) of voters say they are following recent news stories about the two Koreas at least somewhat closely. Twenty-three percent (23%) are not following very closely, if at all.
Male voters are twice as likely as female voters to think the United States should provide South Korea military assistance if it is attacked by North Korea.
Most Republicans (61%) and the plurality (48%) of voters not affiliated with either party agree that America should assist South Korea militarily. Democrats are evenly divided on the question.
Republicans and unaffiliateds believe more strongly than Democrats that North Korea is an enemy of the United States. But there is little disagreement that South Korea is an ally.
The Political Class is much less convinced than Mainstream voters that war between North Korea and South Korea is likely in the near future. But most Political Class voters (58%) favor military assistance to South Korea in the event of such an attack, a view shared by just 48% of Mainstream Americans.
Most Americans are willing to militarily defend only five countries around the globe - Great Britain, Israel, Germany, Canada and Mexico.