Japaneses rally against Takaichi's erroneous remarks regarding China's Taiwan

Japanese citizens and social groups held rallies on Sunday in Yokosuka City, demanding that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi retract her erroneous remarks regarding China's Taiwan region, and opposing her plans to expand the military.

At a Diet meeting on Nov 7, Takaichi claimed that the Chinese mainland's "use of force on Taiwan" could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan and implied the possibility of armed intervention in the Taiwan Strait, which has immediately sparked strong criticism from home and abroad.

Nearly 100 Japanese citizens gathered in front of a station in downtown Yokosuka to condemn Takaichi's erroneous remarks.

"As I just said, Takaichi's remarks constitute interference in China's internal affairs. Taiwan is an inseparable part of China's territory, which is a well-established fact," said Harada Akihiro, convener of the rally.

"Takaichi's remarks are in nature advocating for the exercise of the right to collective self-defense, which must absolutely not be allowed," said a participant.

Participants in the rally also held signs that read "Remove Yokosuka Base" and "Remove Nuclear-Powered Aircraft Carrier" in protest against the presence of the U.S. naval base in the area.

On the same day, another group of Japanese citizens and social groups rallied in the city to express their concerns and opposition to the government's military buildup and expansion plans.

"I am deeply disturbed by the various statements made by the Takaichi Cabinet regarding the 'Three Non-Nuclear Principles.' Anyhow, I hope Japan will adhere to the principles," said a participant of the rally.

"Japan's military spending continues to increase while social security contributions are being cut. I oppose this stance, as we are not paying taxes to fund military expansion," said another participant.

The Three Non-Nuclear Principles -- not possessing, not producing, and not allowing the introduction of nuclear weapons into Japanese territory -- were first declared in the Diet, Japan's parliament, by then Japanese Prime Minister Eisaku Sato in 1967 and have been viewed as a national credo.

Japaneses rally against Takaichi's erroneous remarks regarding China's Taiwan

Japaneses rally against Takaichi's erroneous remarks regarding China's Taiwan

A group of demonstrators gathered in Bulgaria's capital Sofia on Monday to protest against U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran.

The protesters rallied with signs reading "Do not engage war in Iran" and "We do not welcome U.S. military aircraft", to show solidarity with Iran.

"No one has the right to launch an attack on a sovereign country or interfere in its decisions," said Kostadin Kostadinov, chairman of the Bulgarian Revival party, while delivering a speech at the rally.

"The U.S. military equipment should not be brought to Bulgarian territory and the territory cannot be used in any form for military operation against Iran. We demand the U.S. military planes to immediately leave Bulgarian territory. This is not our war. The Iranian people are not our enemy. Iran is not our enemy," Petar Nikolaev Petrov, deputy chairman of the Bulgarian Revival party, said in his speech.

Several U.S. military planes have been deployed at Sofia Airport in recent days, though the Bulgarian government denied that they were linked to U.S. military operations.

The U.S. and Israel on Saturday launched strikes against Iran, plunging the war-torn Middle East into a new round of violence. Iran has retaliated with a series of counterattacks against Israel and U.S. targets across the region.

Protesters rally in Bulgaria against US-Israeli strikes on Iran