China urges the Japanese side to seriously reflect and repent, to withdraw Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's erroneous remarks, and to stop playing with fire and going further down the wrong path, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said Monday.
Spokesperson Guo Jiakun made the remarks at a regular news briefing while responding to a query on Vice President of the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan Taro Aso's support for Takaichi’s remarks on China's Taiwan region.
"This Japanese politician’s remarks demonstrate that Prime Minister Takaichi and the right-wing provocateurs behind her still misjudge the situation, refuse to do soul-searching or correct the wrongdoings, turn a deaf ear to criticism in and outside Japan, downplay and whitewash interference in other countries’ internal affairs and threat of force in disregard of facts, show no basic respect to international law and basic norms of international relations, and attempt to break free from the post-war international order and revive militarism in Japan by stoking conflict and confrontation. This should put Japan’s Asian neighbors and the international community on high alert," said Guo.
"It needs to be pointed out that attempting to grab attention and reap public support by provoking China is malign in nature and very dangerous. We urge the Japanese side to seriously reflect on and repent for its wrongdoing, simply retract Prime Minister Takaichi’s erroneous remarks, stop playing with fire, and avoid going further down the wrong path," he said.
China urges Japan to withdraw Takaichi's erroneous remarks: FM spokesperson
China urges Japan to withdraw Takaichi's erroneous remarks: FM spokesperson
Winter travel bookings in China have gained a boost this year after several regions announced an additional "snow holiday" for students and many workers in the hopes of further fueling the season's tourism boom and encouraging residents to take up winter sports.
The snow holiday is taking place in cities including Urumqi and Altay in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, as well as across Jilin Province and other regions, offering residents another break during the winter season on top of the usual winter vacation that Chinese students enjoy.
As a result, flight bookings have seen a substantial increase. Data from online travel booking platforms indicate notable spikes in ticket reservations from both Urumqi and Altay from Nov 29 to Dec 7.
Flight bookings departing from Urumqi increased by 45 percent compared to the period from Nov 15 to 23, while bookings departing from Altay increased by 48 percent.
"During the snow holiday, total ticket bookings for scenic spots in Xinjiang increased by 16 percent compared to the previous period, with the most popular attractions including Sayram Lake, Hemu Scenic Area, and Kanas Scenic Area. Meanwhile, Jilin Province implemented a free skiing policy for university students. Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang are also gradually increasing their discounts. Driven by these policies, tourism in many cities in northeast China and Xinjiang has continued to rise this year, and winter tourism destinations have become more diverse," said Shi Ke, a researcher at the big data research institute of Qunar.com, a leading Chinese travel booking platform.
In addition to ski resorts, glacier and snow mountain scenic spots have also become trending destinations for winter tourism. Ticket bookings for famous attractions have doubled year on year.
Hotel reservations at popular ice and snow tourism destinations are also booming. From November this year to the end of January of 2026, hotel bookings in Bortala Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture of Xinjiang surged by over 80 percent year on year, while cities like Dandong in Liaoning, Liaoyuan in Jilin, and Yichun in Heilongjiang have also seen significant increases, with growth rates reaching 30 percent year on year.
New 'snow holiday' in northern Chinese regions boosts winter travel
