Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks on Taiwan have exposed the extremely dangerous views of Japan's right-wing political actors, a Chinese expert in intentional relations has warned, urging the international community, especially Asian countries, to remain highly vigilant about Japan's shifting strategic trajectory.
Takaichi has pursued an assertive right-wing agenda since taking office less than a month ago, pushing for military expansion and increased defense spending. Widely seen as an adherent of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's nationalist policies, she has paid frequent visits to the war-linked Yasukuni Shrine, insisted on a denial of historical atrocities, and promoted a so-called "China threat" narrative.
During a recent parliamentary hearing, Takaichi cited the so-called "survival-threatening situation" -- which was defined in a controversial 2015 law -- and linked it to the Taiwan question, suggesting Tokyo might treat the Taiwan question as grounds for military involvement under the legislation.
Su Xiaohui, an associate research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies, said that Takaichi's erroneous and dangerous remarks have violated the one-China principle and undermine the political basis of China-Japan relations.
"It is quite clear that not only the prime minister herself but some right-wing politicians of Japan have realized the gravity of the situation. I suppose that the prime minister miscalculated China's boundary of the policies, what we describe as the 'red lines.' According to her understanding, at one time or on one hand, she could maintain China-Japan relationship, especially to boost the trade between the two countries and benefit Japan's development. And, at the same time, she could move forward on right-wing policies and try to send a signal to the right-wing politicians of Japan and to benefit herself. So, it was miscalculated which has undermined the basis of China-Japan relationship and caused reaction from China," she said.
"According to the previous calculation of some Japanese politicians, China's reaction might be so-called 'limited.' China will made rhetoric [showing its] strong positions towards Japan. But according to their calculation, it was unlikely that China will act in concrete ways, like what we have witnessed that has influenced the tourism and people-to-people exchange and a lot of measures coming up. So, from the reaction from China, it was a clear signal that Japanese has to understand that the one-China principle is of key importance of the bilateral relationship. And from China's perspective, the core national interests cannot be tested," Su continued.
Su noted the timing of the remarks makes them especially challenging to post-war international norms.
"For many years, conservative forces in Japan have certainly not given up and still harbor illusions. The essence of the Japanese prime minister's erroneous remarks is the rightward shift of conservative forces in Japan over the years and their attempt to break free from the constraints of the postwar order. Japan has consistently redefined its post-war system and, in the context of conservatives, this postwar system has become a 'constraint' on postwar Japan. This signals the risk of a resurgence of Japanese militarism," she said.
Su also pointed out that the Japanese side's emerging positions could severely damage the atmosphere for people-to-people exchanges and fundamentally undermine the political foundation of China-Japan relations.
"People-to-people exchanges between China and Japan require a harmonious atmosphere from both sides. When the political foundations for both sides are relatively solid and the two nations show goodwill towards each other, people-to-people exchanges will inevitably be promoted. However, now that the Japanese prime minister has unilaterally damaged Sino-Japanese relations, and even shaken the political foundation of these relations, the confidence and willingness of Chinese people to travel to Japan will be affected," she said.
Int'l community should beware of dangerous shift in Japan's strategic direction: scholar
