TOKYO: The Japanese public has raised pressure on Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's administration over the nation's rising defence spending and tense-inducing security measures, a Kyodo News poll showed.
According to a poll issued on Sunday, about 64.9% of Japanese citizens oppose Japan's recently stated plan to raise taxes in order to finance a significant increase in defence spending.
A substantial shift in Japan's post-war security policies was signalled by Kishida's announcement on Friday of updated security and defense-related papers, including the National Security Strategy.
The survey shows, 53.6% are opposed to the proposed rise in defence funding for five years starting with the upcoming fiscal year, while 39% are in favour.
The poll revealed that 87.1% of respondents thought Kishida had not fully explained the tax hike plan, with only 7.2% saying his explanation was sufficient. The government also intends to raise corporation and tobacco taxes to fund defence spending.
Japan will be able to directly attack another country's territory, according to security documents aiming at the so-called "counterstrike capabilities."
61% of those polled think that having this potential could lead to difficulties with neighbours, compared to 33.9% who don't think it's a problem.
The telephone poll, which was conducted on Saturday and Sunday, received replies from 425 houses and 626 mobile phone users. It surveyed 509 randomly chosen households with eligible voters on landline phones and 2,245 mobile phone numbers.
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