55% Oppose Troop Dispatch to Strait of Hormuz… 69% of Democratic Party Supporters Negative

More than half of South Koreans oppose sending troops to the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which most of the crude oil consumed in Korea passes. In a Gallup Korea survey released on the 11th, those saying "troops should not be dispatched" (55%) outnumbered those saying "troops should be dispatched" (32%) by more than 20 percentage points, while 13% withheld their opinion. The survey was conducted by telephone interviews on the 8th and 9th with 1,000 adults aged 18 and older nationwide, with a sampling error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.

Opinions on the issue split sharply along party lines. Among supporters of the Democratic Party of Korea, 69% opposed the deployment. About half (50%) of People Power Party supporters were in favor.

Gallup also presented past survey results on the same issue and on previous overseas deployments. When U.S. President Donald Trump asked several countries, including Korea, this past March to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz, opposition stood at 55%, ahead of 30% in favor. In May, when the Korean civilian vessel Namuh came under attack, 16% supported "dispatching warships for the purpose of providing military support to the United States," 48% backed "dispatching warships on the condition that Korean vessels be escorted," and 24% were "opposed to dispatching warships." Gallup Korea noted that "public opinion has differed depending on the mission and scope of past overseas deployments." In an October 2024 survey on support for Ukraine, 66% said "only non-military support should be provided," 13% said "military support should be provided," and 16% said "no support should be provided." In March 2003, during the Iraq War, 76% opposed the U.S. request to send combat troops, and opposition also stood at 55% that September when the request was for a deployment aimed at maintaining security.

In the same survey, party support stood at 38% for the Democratic Party of Korea and 29% for the People Power Party. The Reform Party polled 3%, while the Rebuilding Korea Party and the Progressive Party each drew 2%. Independents accounted for 26%. The People Power Party, which stood at 30% in last week's survey, slipped 1 percentage point, while the Democratic Party held steady at 38%.

Details of the survey are available on the website of the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission.