More than half of Koreans were found to hold a negative view of the United States. Discontent in Korea over the unilateral trade tariff pressure led by U.S. President Donald Trump and the approach to the Middle East conflict appears to have been decisive. Even as anti-American sentiment was stoked by unilateralist foreign policy, the fundamental security view that values the South Korea-U.S. alliance remained firmly intact.
The U.S. think tank Pew Research Center said on the 24th (local time) that 55% of Korean adults expressed an unfavorable view of the United States. That is a surge of 16 percentage points from a year earlier. It is the first time since Pew Research Center began the survey about 20 years ago that a majority of Koreans showed antipathy toward the United States. It exceeds the 50% negative rating in 2003, when anti-U.S. protests were intense over the deaths of two middle school girls crushed by a U.S. armored vehicle, marking a record high. By contrast, positive views plunged to 45%. The poll was conducted from Mar. 3 to Apr. 4 among 1,045 Korean adults.
Experts said the deterioration in Korean public opinion stems from Trump's extreme America-first policies and excessive pressure on allies. Among those surveyed, 85% expressed strong dissatisfaction with the tariff policy Trump is pushing through. Notably, 63% of the dissatisfied respondents said they "strongly oppose" it. Earlier, Trump pressured that unless Korea hurried to approve the bilateral trade agreement, a 25% high tariff would be imposed on major Korean exports.
On the response to the armed clash situation with Iran, 73% also gave negative assessments. Citing Korea's reluctance to support military clashes with Iran, Trump ordered a reduction of the South Korea-U.S. combined exercises, a core pillar of security, sparking controversy.
As the stance of treating alliances as a transaction is repeated, U.S. leadership and credibility in the international community also appear badly shaken. The share in Korea who named the United States a trustworthy partner was only 57%. That is a drop of 26 percentage points from 83% in 2022 under the Joe Biden administration. Trust in the United States, which had recovered under an alliance-restoration stance, seems to have worsened sharply after the change of administration. Only 21% believed the United States determines its foreign policy while respecting and considering other countries' positions. Furthermore, the share saying the United States makes a tangible contribution to global peace and stability fell sharply from 74% last year to 47% this year, indicating growing skepticism about its global role.
However, the chilled sentiment toward the United States did not advance to the stage of rejecting the alliance itself. Still, 84% of Koreans identified the United States as the most important ally. In a global survey last year by Pew Research Center, Korea ranked second after Israel in choosing the United States as a key ally. It appears that antipathy toward certain government policies and political leaders did not topple fundamental support for a robust security cooperation framework. Given North Korea's security threat, it seems to attest that the United States' presence remains overwhelmingly significant as a practical deterrent.