Japan blasted over remarks on Taiwan

The Chinese mainland is demanding that Japan adhere to the one-China principle and has strongly criticized remarks made by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi regarding Taiwan.

Chen Binhua, spokesman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, expressed "strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition" to Takaichi's statements during a regular news conference on Wednesday. He described her comments in the Diet as "malicious" and a "blatant interference in China's internal affairs", asserting they "seriously violate the one-China principle".

Takaichi had claimed in the Japanese parliament that if the mainland were to deploy warships and use force against Taiwan, it could create a "survival-threatening situation "for Japan. This implied that the Japanese Self-Defense Forces could then exercise collective self-defense.

Chen emphasized that Beijing "will not tolerate any actions that challenge its core interests".

"Anyone who attempts to challenge China's core interests or obstruct the great cause of China's reunification will never be accepted or tolerated by the Chinese government, the Chinese people and the Chinese military," Chen stressed.

The Foreign Ministry has also lodged a formal protest with the Japanese side, as Takaichi has repeatedly made similar statements since taking office in October.

In a separate move that drew Chinese condemnation, the Japanese government on Tuesday conferred the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun to Hsieh Chang-ting, former representative of the "Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office" in Japan.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun on Wednesday called this action "yet another mistaken action by Japan on Taiwan-related issues".He reiterated that the Taiwan question is an insurmountable red line and forms the political foundation of China-Japan relations.

Guo urged Japan to stop sending any wrong signals to "Taiwan independence" separatist forces.

Chen Binhua also called on Tokyo to "reflect on history and learn from it", referencing Japan's 50-year colonial rule over Taiwan, and handle Taiwan-related issues with "utmost prudence".

Chen also issued a warning to the Democratic Progressive Party authorities in Taiwan, stating that any attempt to pursue "independence" by relying on external forces is doomed to fail.

He criticized Taiwan's deputy leader, Hsiao Bi-khim, for attending and addressing the annual meeting of the "Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China" in Brussels, dismissing the group as a "small clique of extreme anti-China figures".

"The DPP authorities' collusion with such an organization to stage this farce will only bring disgrace upon themselves," Chen said.

lishangyi@chinadaily.com.cn