Among the leaders of the United States, Japan, China, and Russia surrounding the Korean Peninsula, the figure preferred by our people is Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. Russian President Vladimir Putin was at the bottom.
In a survey conducted by Gallup Korea from the 26th to the 28th targeting 1,000 people aged 18 and over, the results revealed that 27% reported a favorable impression of Prime Minister Ishiba, while 51% reported an unfavorable impression.
U.S. President Donald Trump's favorability was 24%, making it the second highest. The unfavorable rating was 67%. Chinese President Xi Jinping had a favorability of 10%, with an unfavorable rating of 76%. Putin's favorability stood at 4%, and his unfavorable rating was 88%.
Gallup Korea has conducted this survey sporadically since 2013. In a survey conducted in 2021, former Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida had a favorability of 6%. The late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had a favorability ranging from 3% to 6% in five surveys conducted from 2013 to 2018.
Gallup Korea noted, "Prime Minister Ishiba is known to be negative towards visits to the YAS shrine and is seen as a moderate figure regarding Korean-Japanese history," adding that, "The feelings of Koreans towards Japan appear to be more conciliatory than ever."
In a survey conducted from the 12th to the 14th, just before Liberation Day, the favorability of Koreans towards Japan was 38%, while the favorability towards Japanese people was 52%. Prime Minister Ishiba's favorability was higher among men (34%) than women (20%). Similar trends were observed regarding Japan and Japanese people.
President Trump's favorability is half of the 49% recorded by former U.S. President Joe Biden in the 2021 survey. However, it is similar to the five surveys conducted during the first term of the Trump administration from 2017 to 2019.
Xi's favorability rose to 59% in a survey conducted shortly after his visit to Korea in 2014. The following year, former President Park Geun-hye attended a victory day event held in Beijing, China. However, after China retaliated economically and implemented a ban on Korean imports in response to the deployment of the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system, the favorability significantly dropped.
Putin's favorability in the previous survey in 2021 was 19%. Gallup Korea explained that the decreased favorability may be attributed to the war that began with Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the deployment of North Korean troops.
Unlike in the past, Gallup Korea did not measure the favorability and unfavorability of North Korean Chairman Kim Jong-un in this survey.
This survey was conducted through telephone interviews with randomly selected virtual numbers. The sampling error is ±3.1%p at a 95% confidence level, with a contact rate of 45.8% and a response rate of 11.8%. For detailed information, refer to the website of the National Election Opinion Survey Deliberation Committee.