Japan’s new conservative prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, has stirred a hornet’s nest after declaring in a parliamentary committee meeting that China’s potential use of military force towards Taiwan could constitute a ‘survival-threatening situation’ that would justify Japan intervening militarily.
Tying Japan’s security to Taiwan crosses a red line for the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian responded sharply, stating that Takaichi’s statement constituted “gross interference in China’s internal affairs and violates the one-China principle, the principles set forth in the four political documents between China and Japan, and basic norms in international relations…China deplores and opposes that and has made serious démarches and protests to Japan.”
Takaichi, however, has refused to bend despite being cautioned by other Japanese leaders, including former prime minister Ishiba Shigeru.
The dispute has escalated from a war of words to a major diplomatic rift. China issued a no-travel-to-Japan advisory, stopped imports of Japanese seafoods, and increased coast guard operations in the disputed Daoyu/Senkaku islands. China’s representative at the UN has also complained to UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres about Takaichi’s remarks.
US ambassador to Japan, George Glass, has criticized China’s role in the dispute and, after meeting with Japan’s foreign minister, stated publicly that he and Donald Trump “had her [Takaichi’s] back.”
In a phone call this week with US president Donald Trump, Chinese president Xi Jinping raised the Taiwan issue. China’s foreign ministry reported that Xi told Trump that “Taiwan’s return to China is an integral part of the post-war international order. China and the U.S. fought shoulder to shoulder against fascism and militarism. Given what is going on, it is even more important for us to jointly safeguard the victory of WWII.”
Trump subsequently called Japan’s prime minister. The friendly chat included a discussion on “the latest situation of U.S.-China relations,” according to Japan’s foreign ministry. Takaichi has declined to provide further details.
The Xi-Trump-Takaichi communications may have served to calm the troubled waters for now, but China-Japan relations will not recover easily.
China’s heated response reflects strong sensitivities regarding Taiwan and also historical animosities arising from Japan’s war on China.
Japan colonized Taiwan after defeating China in an 1895 war. It annexed Korea in 1910. In 1931, Japan’s imperial army invaded China’s northeast (东北- Manchuria) and in 1937 it waged an all-out war in an attempt to colonize all of China. Japan’s imperial forces committed extensive war crimes in China. Those wounds have yet to heal. Any hint of Japanese military mobilization immediately raises concerns, particularly since this year is the 80th anniversary of the victory over Japanese imperialism. Events commemorating the victory have been held all over China.
Japan’s representatives at the UN have argued that the government’s policy is based solely on “passive defense” but recent developments have raised questions about how ‘passive’ Japan’s defense actually is.
The current prime minister, Sanae Takaichi is well known as a hawk and her Liberal Democratic Party has jettisoned its alliance with the moderate Komeito party to ally with a right-wing, populist party – the Ishin no Kai. Though facing strong opposition, Takaichi seems determined to build a national security state, emulating the United States.
She has advocated for altering Japan’s peace constitution so that Japan’s military could be upgraded from its current status as a ‘self-defence force’. The LDP appears ready to jettison Japan’s three non-nuclear principles adopted in the 1960s – to not make, possess, or permit the introduction of nuclear weapons in Japan. The government is also hoping to introduce new national security laws and establish a national intelligence agency.
The Chinese government is emphasizing that it is defending the postwar global order established after the Allied victory over the fascist powers including Japan. “China and the U.S. fought shoulder to shoulder against fascism and militarism. Given what is going on, it is even more important for us to jointly safeguard the victory of WWII,” Xi Jinping appealed to Donald Trump in their recent phone call.
Such invocations of past victories over fascism may help pave the way for a peaceful transition to a multipolar world. However, much has changed since 1945, and such appeals may obscure two essential changes that took place after World War II.
First, the United States soon abandoned the wartime principles of international cooperation when faced with the Chinese revolution and instead reasserted their imperial agenda. In Asia, this reassertion of the US empire had devastating effects, leading to the wars in Korea and Vietnam with the attendant loss of millions of lives. Today, the US continues that agenda with hundreds of military bases in the area, including in Okinawa and Japan. Thus, if Japan seems to be rearming it is largely at the behest of, or in cooperation with, the United States.
The second difference is that China today is not the China of 1945. It has become an extremely powerful country. As such, fears of China can be easily stirred up by opponents who often engage in red-baiting or in demonization.
That is why postings such as the one China’s consul-general in Osaka, Xue Jian, made on X to the effect that “the protruding dirty neck” must be cut off, an apparent reference to Takaichi, are so destructive. Though since taken down, the post has caused a furor in Japan as commentators seized on the remark to promote fear of China.
Such outbursts only harm China’s cause. Many people in Japan understand China’s concerns and organizations such as the Center for Research and Documentation on Japan’s War Responsibility, the Association of Bereaved Families for Peace, the Panel of Lawyers, the Article 9 committees to defend Japan’s peace constitution, the Peace Boat and numerous others have worked hard to promote solidarity with China and peace in the region. The Chinese government could do worse than listen to their advice on how to constructively address Japan’s drift towards militarism.
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