A growing number of Japanese regard the United States as the greatest threat to world peace ahead of traditional rival China, according to a new survey.
The annual poll, released by the Japan Press Research Institute on Saturday, found 26.8 per cent of respondents named the US as the biggest threat to global peace. That was up 9.3 percentage points on last year and far above the 6.6 per cent recorded in 2024.
Russia came top of the list in 2025 but slipped to third place this year, with 18.3 per cent of the total vote. China rose 8.2 percentage points to first place, cited by 32.5 per cent of the 5,000 people polled in July and August.
Analysts attribute the shift in sentiment to the actions of one man.