Less than half of S. Koreans say unification with N. Korea necessary: poll

A recent poll has revealed that less than half of South Koreans believe unifying the divided Koreas is necessary, marking the second consecutive year that support for unification has fallen below 50 percent. The Korea Institute for National Unification conducted the survey, which found that 48.2 percent of respondents said unification with North Korea is necessary. This is a slight decrease from the 49 percent recorded in 2025.

Age played a significant role in attitudes towards unification, with over 60 percent of those born in 1960 or before expressing the need for unification with North Korea. However, less than 40 percent of those born in 1991 or later shared this view.

When asked if they agreed with the argument that unification may not be necessary if the two Koreas can peacefully coexist, an impressive 66.9 percent of respondents said yes, marking an increase from 63.2 percent the previous year. Additionally, 70.3 percent of respondents indicated they were not interested in North Korea, a 2.2 percentage point increase from the previous year and the highest figure since the annual survey began in 2014.