66.8% Japanese object to lifting arms export ban

About 66.8 percent of Japanese opposed the government's attempt to lift the self-imposed ban on weapons export, according to the results of a poll released Sunday. The nationwide telephone poll, which was conducted by Japan's Kyodo News through the weekend, said that about 25.7 percent of the surveyed supported the government move. The Japanese government led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is mulling relaxing the so-called "three principles" on weapons exports. Meanwhile, the poll also said that the supporting rate for Abe' s cabinet stood at 53.9 percent, a drop of 2 percentage points from the previous one in late January. According to the poll, about 65.6 percent of the respondents said it is inevitable for Japan to cut tariffs in the ongoing U.S.- led Trans-Pacific Partnership, while about 26.2 percent said Japan should not agree to such cuts.