Beijing [China]/Tokyo [Japan], November 16 (ANI): Beijing on Sunday urged its students to reconsider studying in Japan, citing what it described as an unstable security environment in the country, official Chinese media reported. The advisory follows remarks by Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in parliament on Taiwan, which drew sharp criticism from China as “reckless rhetoric.”
China’s Education Ministry cited increased safety risks for Chinese citizens in Japan, pointing to recent lapses in public security, a surge in crimes targeting Chinese nationals, and an overall unfavorable study environment, according to Xinhua.
Earlier this month, Takaichi stated that Japan could respond with its Self-Defense Forces if China attacked Taiwan, warning that a Taiwan emergency involving military force could pose a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan under its security legislation. The law, under certain conditions, allows Japan to exercise the right of collective self-defense.
A Kyodo report noted that Takaichi acknowledged her government could, depending on circumstances, authorize the Self-Defense Forces to act if China imposed a maritime blockade on Taiwan or engaged in other coercive measures, even if Japan itself was not directly attacked.
In 2021, former Prime Minister Taro Aso similarly stated that Japan “would have to defend Taiwan” alongside the United States if the island were invaded by China, prompting a strong backlash from Beijing. Taiwan was under Japanese colonial rule for 50 years until 1945. On Friday, China also advised its citizens to avoid visiting Japan, apparently as a retaliatory measure following Takaichi’s remarks.
China summoned the Japanese ambassador in Beijing and demanded that Takaichi retract her comments, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. Japan’s Foreign Ministry lodged a similar protest the same day over a recent social media post by a Chinese diplomat responding to the remarks, Kyodo reported.
According to the Chinese Global Times, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning posted on X in English and Japanese, citing the 1972 China-Japan Joint Communique and reminding Japan that “irrespective of which administration is in office, Japan should honor its commitments.”
An editorial in Xinhua warned that Japan risked turning the country into a battlefield if it intervened militarily in the Taiwan Strait. “This is not merely reckless rhetoric. It is profoundly destabilizing. By dragging the Taiwan question into Japan’s already-contested security framework, Takaichi is deliberately blurring the boundary between defensive policy and outright militaristic adventurism,” it said.
Similarly, a Global Times opinion piece said Japan must not misjudge China’s stern warning. It described Takaichi’s remarks regarding Taiwan as “extremely egregious,” stating that she openly challenged the one-China principle, infringed upon China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and deliberately undermined the post-World War II international order. The piece added that these actions crossed the bottom line of China-Japan relations and threatened the global environment for peace and development.
Meanwhile, a Chinese coast guard vessel formation passed through waters surrounding the disputed Diaoyu Islands, known as the Senkaku Islands in Japan. The coast guard described the operation as “a rights-protection patrol conducted in accordance with the law.”
Beijing views Taiwan as part of China, while most countries, including Japan and the United States, do not recognize Taiwan as independent. The US, under the Taiwan Relations Act, supports Taiwan’s defense, opposes any forceful takeover, and provides the island with weapons. (ANI)
About The Author
