Japan or Korea: which draws more resentment in China? Highly rated Reddit replies point to history. Others question whether an entire country can be reduced to a single feeling.
【Original post】 u/Buyeo10004 asked r/AskChina: “Does China hate Japan more, or Korea more?” (Jan 29, 2026). The post itself is a cartoon of women beneath Chinese, Japanese, and South Korean flags. It uses nationality-based appearance stereotypes, notably in the Korean figure’s eyes; the image is not a factual portrait of people in those countries. At the time checked, it showed about 1,500 points and 822 comments, and the thread was locked. 【Before reading】 These are individual comments in upvote order, not representative survey results. Historical and diplomatic assertions belong to their authors. Confirm the image’s reuse rights before publication. Original: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskChina/comments/1qq27rl/does_china_hate_japan_more_or_korea_more/?sort=top 댓글 시작 Aescorvo: Lol Japan. Not even close. LelandTurbo0620: The beef with Japan is not even on the same dimension as with korea jettech737: Germany also tried hard to atone for what they did, like preserving some of the concentration camps as a lesson for future generations. Japan barely acknowledges world war 2 besides Pearl Harbor and the atomic bombs. samalam1: Wha? Do you not know anything about imperial Japan? They gave China a reason to dislike them and their continual failure to take responsibility makes it do much worse. SchweppesCreamSoda: Yup I often have to watch what I say around Korean people. Once I was like, "yeah korean is one of 56 ethnic minorities in china" and I deeply offended a Korean. Simple_Original2320: No Chinese people truly "hate" South Korea, but there are really some people who hate Japan. No matter how it is evaluated, this is the case objectively. jaraxel_arabani: China doesn't like Korea? Since when...? Noobcakes19: i mean who devastated nanking? edit: I'm han chinese descent and not a Chinese national but, it's obvious isn't it? Agreeable_Month5966: You’re also ignoring the main factor, which is racism. The west cared far much more for white Europeans that were killed by the Nazis than they were for Asian people who suffered the same fate. Zzziksin: Japan for sure. Korea hates Japan for the exact same reason Extra-Fig-7425: What WW2’s Japan has done is not even comparable. Key-Assignment120: 没有 ，，，韩流禁令 ，是因为民众太喜欢韩国的流行文化，但是高层不希望这样，所以限制 Wolf4980: We don't hate South Korea Hairy_Scale4412: On a hate scale of 1 to 10, South Korea is about a 5, where Japan is closer to 100. YenIsFong: bruh....srsly? Someone failed their history class Pryd3r1: Now you're using them to protect you from other Koreans? Very dishonest wording there. What do you think happens to South Korea if US forces leave? Honestly? Important-Battle-374: Nippon. Buyeo10004(작성자): I heard that China really dislikes Korea. I mean, there's even the 'Hallyu Ban' (Ban on Korean culture), isn't there? nahuhnot4me: I heard is not evidence. Best to hang with Chinese, Korean and Japanese people and anyone for that matter. A lot of great people everywhere. GoalElectrical: UnFun fact: The predecessor of current both korean governments, Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, was founded in Shanghai, China. We all know the reason behind why it's not founded in korea. bene_42069: I'm not Chinese, but it's obviously Japan. Korea historically never attacked China since fucking 7th century. In fact they're the fellow victims of Japan Empire war crimes in the 1900s. HeebieJeebiex: Japan obviously for historical reasons. Korea never launched any kind of attacks on China and I think the relation is pretty chill. I found a lot of kpop music and fashion right off of Xiaohongshu. 😆 Usefullles: The only thing that can unite China and South Korea is hatred of Japan. Gasplank: Are you aware of something called the Korean War were China deployed 3 million Chinese troops fighting for North Korea and invading South Korea? You don't remember this perhaps but every South Korean does/knows Top-Fig-8846: The govt being stupid doesn’t mean we hate Koreans, we learn history to decide who to ally or fight against with, thank you. birdsarntreal1: Are you unfamiliar with the Nanjing massacre? SpareKale4246: The question is who hates the Japanese more notstrangeguy: This is absolutely not true at all lmao they all love japan more than china wattahitsonwattahit: Every South East Asian country hates Japan due to WW2. Due_Capital_3507: Brother, how can you be this ignorant of WW2 FishingObvious4730: Why would China hate Korea? lol Did Korea do the Rape of Nanking? 00HoppingGrass00: Personally, I have the strongest hatred towards people who post pointlessly instigating questions online, but hey, that's just me. Physical-General6125: Obviously the hate for Japan is way stronger. It’s just dislike for South Korea—hatred isn’t even in the mix at all. jennysonson: Korea hasnt even done 1/100th of what Japan did to China historically so yeah I’d imagine its mainly just a historical grudge but most people know its not something the present generation is at fault of. pinkpinkpink19: Japan no doubt. The wound is still fresh for many chinese people. YAOZdesigner: There's a world of difference beween those two. Japan by a far length Individual_Poet_3350: Japan, there were several backstabbing Japanese cases here but never to Koreans