---
title: "Americans hold very negative views of North Korea amid nuclear tensions"
description: "Overall, 78% of Americans have an unfavorable view of the communist nation ruled by Kim Jong Un, with 61% holding a very unfavorable opinion. "
date: "2017-04-05"
authors:
  - name: "Jacob Poushter"
    job_title: "Associate Director, Global Attitudes Research"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/jacob-poushter/"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2017/04/05/americans-hold-very-negative-views-of-north-korea-amid-nuclear-tensions/"
categories:
  - "Global Image of Countries"
  - "International Affairs"
  - "Nuclear Weapons"
  - "Nuclear Weapons"
---

# Americans hold very negative views of North Korea amid nuclear tensions

[![](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/03/FT_17.03.30_NorthKorea_1.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2017/04/05/americans-hold-very-negative-views-of-north-korea-amid-nuclear-tensions/ft_17-03-30_northkorea_1/)

Americans have uniformly negative views of North Korea and its nuclear ambitions – a subject likely to be high on the agenda when President Donald Trump meets in Florida this week with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

[![](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/03/FT_17.03.30_NorthKorea_2.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2017/04/05/americans-hold-very-negative-views-of-north-korea-amid-nuclear-tensions/ft_17-03-30_northkorea_2/)

Roughly two-thirds of Americans (65%) are very concerned about North Korea having nuclear weapons. And 64% say that in the event of a serious conflict, the United States should use military force to defend its Asian allies, such as Japan, South Korea or the Philippines, against the Pyongyang regime, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. A further 61% think sanctions, rather than attempts at closer ties, are the best way to deal with the nuclear threat posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

[![](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/03/FT_17.03.30_NorthKorea_3.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2017/04/05/americans-hold-very-negative-views-of-north-korea-amid-nuclear-tensions/ft_17-03-30_northkorea_3/)

Overall, 78% of Americans have an unfavorable view of the communist nation ruled by Kim Jong Un, with 61% holding a *very* unfavorable opinion. Negative attitudes toward North Korea are shared across demographic groups, though more college-educated Americans hold negative views (91%) than do Americans with a high school education or less (69%). Unlike [public opinion on other aspects of U.S. foreign policy](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2017/01/12/the-world-facing-trump-public-sees-isis-cyberattacks-north-korea-as-top-threats/), there are no significant partisan divides on attitudes toward North Korea.

However, when it comes to concerns about North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, there is a slight partisan difference. Roughly three-quarters of Republicans (74%) are very concerned about the weapons program, compared with 66% of Democrats. There is a larger division by age on concern about the North’s nukes. Nearly eight-in-ten Americans ages 50 and older (78%) say they are very concerned about North Korea having nuclear weapons, compared with only 42% of 18- to 29-year-olds.

On the question of defending U.S. allies in Asia in the event of an attack by North Korea, 64% of Americans say the U.S. should use force to defend its allies, while only three-in-ten say the U.S. should not. Republicans are more likely than Democrats (70% vs. 61%) to favor using force if there were an attack, which is required by treaties signed with Japan, South Korea and the Philippines.

[![](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/03/FT_17.03.30_NorthKorea_4.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2017/04/05/americans-hold-very-negative-views-of-north-korea-amid-nuclear-tensions/ft_17-03-30_northkorea_4/)

Men (73%) are also more likely than women (56%) to say the U.S. should defend Asian allies in this hypothetical situation, and college-educated Americans are more willing to use force (74%) than are those with a high school education or less (59%).

When given an option between increasing economic sanctions against Kim Jong Un’s authoritarian regime to deal with its nuclear program or deepening ties with North Korea, 61% of Americans prefer increasing the already-severe sanctions that are in place. Only 28% say they want to deal with the nuclear issue by engaging more and deepening ties with the country. Republicans (70%) are keener on sanctions than Democrats (61%), as are older Americans (69%) compared with young people (49%).

*Note: See* [*here*](https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/05/09171758/Pew-Research-Center-U.S.-Views-of-North-Korea-TOPLINE-FOR-RELEASE.pdf) *for topline results of our survey and *[*methodology*](https://www.pewresearch.org/global/international-survey-methodology/?country_select=United+States&year_select=2017)*. For more on American views of China, see “*[*Americans’ Views of China Improve as Economic Concerns Ease*](https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2017/04/04/americans-views-of-china-improve-as-economic-concerns-ease/)*.”*