Tokyo has rejected China's accusations of militarism — Bloomberg
Japanese Defense Minister Shinzō Koizumi stated that China’s accusations regarding the alleged resurgence of Japanese militarism are hypocritical.
This was reported by Bloomberg following the Asian Defense Forum in Singapore.
In his view, Beijing is pursuing an aggressive policy and possesses a massive nuclear arsenal, which renders its accusations baseless.
Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue international security event, Koizumi drew the world community’s attention to the obvious contradiction in the PRC’s official rhetoric.
He emphasized that a state with powerful nuclear weapons is carrying out information attacks against a country that does not possess such weapons at all.
The Japanese official’s sharp statement came as U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hagset had spoken favorably the day before about the improvement of relations between Washington and Beijing.
“Isn’t it strange that China, which possesses a massive arsenal of nuclear weapons and strategic bombers, accuses Japan—which has neither—of so-called ‘new militarism’?” Koizumi said.
For a long time, the Japanese side has tried to avoid open confrontation in diplomatic statements regarding the PRC.
However, the communist authorities in Beijing have significantly increased political pressure on Tokyo, attempting to rally other Asian countries around historical grievances from the Second World War.
Chinese diplomats regularly accuse Japan of remilitarization due to the modernization of its Self-Defense Forces.
“But this is completely untrue,” Koizumi emphasized, adding that Japan’s efforts are aimed at conflict deterrence and are carried out in a transparent manner.
China’s communist leadership is particularly outraged by the decisive defense measures initiated by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
She successfully lifted strict restrictions on arms exports and involved the national Self-Defense Forces in large-scale joint military exercises with the United States in the South China Sea.
In addition, the head of government openly suggested the participation of Japanese troops in the defense of Taiwan in the event of an armed attack by the PRC.
The U.S. and China exchanged expulsions of journalists
At a UN Security Council meeting, China sharply criticized U.S. foreign policy, particularly Washington’s actions regarding Iran and its approach to international organizations. Beijing accused the U.S. of taking unilateral steps and undermining the system of global cooperation.
As a reminder, Taiwan deployed naval forces and fighter jets to monitor yet another Chinese “combat readiness patrol” near the island.
Beijing officially criticized Germany after a group of German lawmakers visited Taiwan. China stated that such trips are politically sensitive and could affect bilateral relations between the countries.
