China issues stern protest as Japan links Taiwan crisis to self-defence rights

China has issued a sharp warning to Japan following remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi concerning the situation around Taiwan.

According to Chinese media, the country's Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong summoned Japanese Ambassador to China Kenji Kanasugi to convey Beijing’s strong objections and outline the potential consequences.

The diplomatic protest was triggered by Takaichi’s recent statement that a potential military crisis in Taiwan would pose an existential threat to Japan and could compel Tokyo to invoke its “right of collective self-defence.”

According to a statement published on the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s website, Sun Weidong condemned the Japanese prime minister’s comments as “provocative” and “extremely dangerous,” stressing that Beijing views such expressions as blatant interference in its internal affairs. He warned that these statements undermine the international order and insisted that Japan must bear responsibility if the remarks are not withdrawn.

“Eighty years ago, the heroic Chinese people defeated the Japanese invaders after 14 years of bloody struggle. Today, anyone who dares to interfere in any form with China's reunification will be firmly rebuffed,” Sun declared.

The current status of Taiwan stems from the events of 1949, when the Chinese Civil War ended with the Kuomintang (KMT) government, led by Chiang Kai-shek, retreating to the island after being defeated by Communist forces. Formal relations between Beijing and Taipei were subsequently severed.

In the late 1980s, limited trade and unofficial communication resumed, and since the early 1990s, both sides have engaged in dialogue through two non-governmental intermediaries:

• the Beijing-based Association for the Development of Relations Across the Taiwan Strait, and

• the Taipei-based Cross-Strait Exchange Foundation.

Taiwan continues to use the flag and state symbols of the Republic of China, which governed the Chinese mainland prior to the Communist Party’s rise to power. Beijing regards Taiwan as a breakaway province and views reunification as a central national priority.

By Tamilla Hasanova