Japan PM Sanae Takaichi defends Taiwan remarks after Chinese criticism
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Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi had said that if military force were to be used in a Taiwan conflict, it could be considered a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan.
PHOTO: AFP
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TOKYO – Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Nov 10 defended her description of a conflict over Taiwan as potentially amounting to an existential risk for Japan, after a Chinese diplomat accused her of meddling in Beijing’s internal affairs.
Ms Takaichi on Nov 7 said that if military force were to be used in a Taiwan conflict, including the use of warships, it could be considered a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan.
That classification is significant because it would provide a legal justification for Japan to deploy its military to help defend friendly economies.
“Although I did state a number of possible scenarios, I also said the government will make a comprehensive judgment on whether the situation constitutes a ‘survival-threatening situation’ taking into account all information,” Ms Takaichi said on Nov 10, when asked in Parliament to clarify her position on the matter.
Ms Takaichi did not say on Nov 10 or in her initial comments that Japan would deploy its military in such a scenario, but her acknowledgment of a potential formal classification of an existential risk provides more clarity than previous administrations on how Japan would view a clash over Taiwan, such as a possible Chinese invasion of the island.
Her comments on Nov 7 sparked anger from Mr Xue Jian, the consul-general of China in the western city of Osaka, who took to social media platform X to say that Japan’s stance in considering a Taiwan contingency as threatening its own survival as a fatal path chosen by “foolish politicians”.
“If you go sticking that filthy neck where it doesn’t belong, it’s gonna get sliced right off. You ready for that?” Mr Xue wrote in a separate post, according to Japan Forward, the English-language branch of the Sankei Shimbun.
The post was subsequently deleted.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said on Nov 10 that Tokyo had filed a complaint to Beijing
“Although the intention of the post is unclear, it must be said that the wording was very inappropriate for the leader of a Chinese consulate,” Mr Kihara said.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a regular news conference on Nov 10 that Mr Xue’s post was a response to Ms Takaichi’s “wrongful and dangerous” remarks on Taiwan, urging Tokyo to “take a hard look at its historical responsibilities”.
Under its pacifist Constitution, Japan retains tight controls on the use of its military.
But a law adopted in 2015 reinterpreted the Constitution to allow the use of armed force for collective self-defence in certain limited situations, including a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan.
Previous administrations have shied away from specifying what exactly would constitute such a scenario.
Dr Adam Liff, a professor of Japanese politics and security at Indiana University’s Hamilton Lugar School, said Ms Takaichi’s remarks should not be seen as a commitment to any particular action in a crisis over Taiwan.
“Her response is best understood as a frank recognition of one possibility that’s been discussed internally within the government of Japan – and noted in public by many politicians and other observers – rather than a clear shift in position,” Dr Liff said.
China considers Taiwan, a self-governed island located between Japan and China, as its own and has not ruled out the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control.
Japan does not have formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan but has spoken out against any attempts to change the status quo unilaterally, and has said that cross-strait ties must be resolved peacefully.
Earlier in November, China criticised Ms Takaichi for meeting a Taiwan official
