A remark by Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has sparked a diplomatic storm. She told parliament:
“When China uses force against Taiwan, this could pose an existential threat to Japan.”
Sanae Takaichi 🇨🇳 Sharp words from Beijing: A Chinese diplomat wrote online that Japan’s “dirty neck” should be “severed.” Both governments summoned their respective ambassadors. The language is unusually harsh, even by the standards of regular diplomatic rhetoric.
✈️ Travel warning as leverage: China cites “significant risks” for Chinese travelers in Japan. Major airlines now allow free rebooking or refunds for Japan flights until the end of December.
🚢 Patrols as a signal: China’s Coast Guard announced “law enforcement patrols” around the Senkaku and Diaoyu Islands, while Taiwan reports increased sightings of military aircraft and vessels.
🎓 Uncertainty for students: Beijing also advises that studying in Japan should be “carefully reconsidered.” More than 120,000 Chinese students are enrolled there, making them the largest group of international students in the country.
🛂 Courting Taiwan: At the same time, Beijing is expanding visa-on-arrival for people from Taiwan to make travel to the mainland more attractive.
Why is the situation so tense?
2012: Large-scale anti-Japan protests in China after the dispute over the Senkaku Islands, with attacks on Japanese shops and factories.
2020: China increases its military presence in the East China Sea. Japan’s interception missions rise sharply.
2023: Japan approves its largest military buildup in decades and labels China a “strategic challenge” for the first time.
2024: Several risky encounters between Chinese and Japanese patrol vessels deepen mutual distrust.
Sources: Al Jazeera, NBC News, The Guardian
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