Japanese media banned from China air show as tensions flare
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Visitors at Aero Asia 2025 in Zhuhai, China, on Nov 27. Kyodo reported that one of its reporters had his certification revoked to the trade show.
PHOTO: AFP
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ZHUHAI, China – Japanese journalists have been barred from entering a Chinese trade show as geopolitical tensions between the two nations persist.
Kyodo reported that one of its reporters had his certification revoked to Aero Asia at the Zhuhai International Airshow Center, part of a broader ban on registered guests from Japan and Japanese media to the event, amid worsening diplomatic relations between Beijing and Tokyo
The exhibition is expected to attract 60,000 visitors during the four-day event starting Nov 27.
A representative for Messe Frankfurt, which helped organise the event with the Zhuhai local government, confirmed some accreditations had been revoked. Several calls to Zhuhai city government went unanswered, while press officials at Jinwan District government, where the expo is held, were not immediately available for comment.
China has warned tourists against visiting Japan after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi earlier in November raised the possibility of using military force in a Taiwan conflict. It has also suspended seafood imports from Japan and frozen film approvals.
It also instructed the country’s airlines to reduce the number of flights to Japan through March 2026, people familiar with the matter have said. BLOOMBERG
