Koreans, Japanese lose faith in 'America First' U.S.
New surveys show rising distrust of Washington in South Korea and Japan as America First policies strain alliances, even as security reliance remains strong.
The United States is losing credibility among the public in key Asian countries, including South Korea, as Washington’s “America First” approach puts growing pressure on the region.
As the U.S. Donald Trump administration’s “America First” policy spreads its influence around the world, a sense of urgency is growing among U.S. allies over the need to prepare for a potential crisis without Washington. Fundamental doubts about alliances are emerging not only within NATO, but also among Asian allies — South Korea and Japan.
For years, Washington has underscored the geopolitical importance of its alliances with Seoul and Tokyo in Northeast Asia by describing them as a “linchpin” and a “cornerstone,” respectively.
But as the Trump administration has placed less emphasis on alliances, signs of strain in the “linchpin” and “cornerstone” are now evident in public opinion.
A total of 46.4 percent of respondents viewed Washington as “not a trustworthy partner,” according to a poll jointly conducted by the JoongAng Ilbo and the East Asia Institute (EAI). Although the difference was within the plus or minus 2.5 percentage-point margin of error, that figure edged past the 45.4 percent who said the United States was “trustworthy.” The poll, with a confidence level of 95 percent, surveyed 1,547 adults nationwide on July 20 and 21.
This year marks the first time that more Koreans said they could not trust the United States than said they could since the EAI began asking the question in 2017. In last year’s survey, 66.3 percent said the United States was trustworthy, more than double the 30.2 percent who said it was not.
In another survey, 47 percent of Japanese respondents said they could not trust the United States, far exceeding the 34.7 percent who said they did. The findings came from an online survey by local think-tank International House of Japan (IHJ), which polled 1,552 Japanese adults between July 17 and 21. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level.
By that measure alone, distrust toward the United States was higher in Japan than in South Korea.
In the latest EAI survey, the share of South Koreans who said they had a “negative impression” of the U.S. president rose slightly to 77.4 percent this year from 73.1 percent last year. Over the same period, the share expressing a “positive impression” of the United States as a country plunged to 47.5 percent from 72.8 percent.
The results suggest that the shift may go beyond personal feelings toward U.S. President Donald Trump and reflect an erosion of trust in the United States itself as an ally.
Seoul, in particular, was seen as having reached a new turning point in its alliance with Washington after a summit last year, which produced a tariff agreement as well as agreements on South Korea’s acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines and expanded authority in the nuclear sector. Yet distrust toward the United States has now reached its highest level on record.
Only 17.8 percent of respondents described South Korea-U.S. relations as “good,” a figure not far above the 14.5 percent who said the same about South Korea-China relations.
Japan showed a similar pattern. The share of Japanese respondents with a “negative impression” of the U.S. leader was virtually unchanged, which tallied at 70.9 percent this year compared to last year’s 70.1 percent.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made conspicuous efforts to demonstrate a closer personal relationship with Trump during their White House summit in March, including initiating an embrace and calling him “Donald.” Yet those gestures appear to have done little to improve Trump’s standing among the Japanese public.
The findings mirror growing doubts in Europe over whether the United States can still be trusted as a security partner. Only one in 10 Europeans viewed the United States as an “ally” in a May survey by the European Council on Foreign Relations, which polled 19,481 adults across 15 European countries.
A similar shift is now emerging among Washington’s key allies in Asia.
The shift is particularly striking because Seoul and Tokyo have consistently remained favorable toward Washington even as positive perceptions toward the United States have weakened globally.
Of the 36 countries surveyed by U.S.-based Pew Research Center, 30 viewed China more favorably than the United States. The survey polled 42,151 adults worldwide.
South Korea and Japan, however, were among just six countries where the United States was viewed more favorably than China. That makes the recent deterioration in public sentiment toward the United States in both countries particularly significant.
Growing distrust toward the United States among South Koreans and Japanese may partly reflect the Trump administration’s higher tariff barriers, which have directly targeted industries such as automobiles and steel in which both countries are major players.
In Japan, the share of respondents who believed the United States supported a global economic order based on free trade fell sharply in just one year, from 63.2 percent last year to 52.9 percent this year. In South Korea, the figure fell from 71.0 percent to 61.4 percent over the same period.
Yet the survey also showed that South Koreans still see the United States as their main security backstop. A total of 62.3 percent of South Korean respondents said maintaining the alliance at its current level or strengthening it somewhat would be sufficient to safeguard national security. Only 29.6 percent disagreed.
The findings may reflect a pragmatic view that South Korea still needs a strong alliance with Washington to protect its security, particularly against North Korea’s growing nuclear and missile threats — while it struggles to adjust to a changing United States.
BY LEE YU-JUNG [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]