Poll: 65% of Taiwanese expect US will help against Chinese attack

Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation (TPOF) released a poll on Tuesday that showed that 65% of Taiwanese expect the United States will send troops in the event of an attack amidst the increasing Chinese aggressive moves against Taiwan.

The result of the survey amounted to a new type of “Taiwan consensus” about the defense of the country, TPOF Chairman Ying-lung You said. The poll found that 26.75% rated the possibility “very high” of the U.S. sending troops to help defend Taiwan, while 38.3% said it was “possible.”

Of the respondents, 17.1% said the possibility was “rather unlikely,” with 11.4% saying it was “completely impossible” that the U.S. would intervene militarily on Taiwan’s behalf, UDN reported.

Asked about the part Japan could play in such a scenario, 22.3% of poll respondents said Tokyo was “highly likely” to send troops as well, 35.7% said there was a possibility it would happen, 21.5% said it was rather unlikely, and 13.7% described Japanese military action as completely unlikely.

While a majority of Taiwanese believed both the U.S. and Japan would intervene militarily to protect Taiwan against China, the proportion of respondents believing in U.S. action stood at 65%, with only 58% expecting Japanese support, You emphasized.

SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES