Cabinet Office Survey Shows Record High Support for Strengthening Japan’s Self-Defense Forces

Sharp Differences of Opinion

A 2025 Cabinet Office public opinion survey on Japan’s Self-Defense Forces and defense issues revealed that 45.2% of respondents felt that the size and capabilities of the SDF “should be strengthened.” The survey, conducted between November and December 2025, targeted 3,000 people aged 18 and over and received replies from 1,534 (a 51.1% response rate). It is conducted once every three years, but this was the first time since 1991, when this new question was introduced, that the survey has received such a high response.

In 1991, there was a gap of more than 50 points between the small percentage who felt the SDF should “be strengthened” and those who wanted it to “be maintained at the current level.” The 2025 survey showed that this gap had narrowed to just 4.6 points. This change in attitude is thought to be due to concerns over military buildups in neighboring countries and the normalization of missile launches.

Asked about defense issues that concerned them, with multiple responses possible, 68.1% of respondents cited “China’s military power and activities in the region,” a 6.8-point increase from the survey three years before and the highest response ever recorded. The other top two concerns, “Japan’s defense capabilities and defense system” and “North Korea’s development of missile and nuclear programs,” also had similarly high responses exceeding 65%.

Regarding the export of defense equipment and transfer of technology overseas, as long as certain rules were adhered to, such as operating under the Three Principles on Transfer of Defense Equipment and Technology, 68.3% were in favor of promoting these activities, far exceeding the 29.7% who opposed them.

Data Sources

• Public opinion survey on Japan’s Self-Defense Forces and defense issues conducted in November 2025 (Japanese) by the Cabinet Office.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo: Two Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-15 fighter jets and a US B-52 strategic bomber conduct joint military training over the Sea of Japan on December 10, 2025. Courtesy the Ministry of Defense. © Jiji.)