appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Liu Zhen

Zhuang Pinghui

After weeks of turmoil in relations with China, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has sought to dial down tensions with Beijing over a hypothetical conflict in the Taiwan Strait.
Responding to a lawmaker’s question on Wednesday, Takaichi told the Japanese parliament that Tokyo’s position on the island remained unchanged and referred to a 1972 commitment that led to the normalisation of ties between Beijing and Tokyo.
“The Japanese government’s basic position regarding Taiwan remains as stated in the 1972 Japan-China Joint Communique, and there has been no change to this position,” Takaichi said.
According to the 1972 communique, “the government of the People’s Republic of China reiterates that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the territory of the People’s Republic of China” and the Japanese government “fully understands and respects this stand”.
The communique also says Japan “firmly maintains its stand under Article 8 of the Potsdam Declaration”. Along with the Cairo Declaration of November 1943, which stipulates that Japan return territory seized from China during war, the two documents are often cited by Beijing as legal treaties supporting Taiwan as a part of China.
Takaichi’s comments on Wednesday come nearly a month after she told the parliament that an attack on Taiwan by the People’s Liberation Army could constitute a “survival-threatening situation” – one that could allow Tokyo to engage in military action.
Her statement on November 7 was the most explicit by a sitting Japanese prime minister on how Tokyo might respond to a Taiwan contingency and marked a departure from the country’s long-held strategic ambiguity over the issue. She later said the remarks were “hypothetical”.
The statement sent ties with China into a downward spiral, and prompted repeated demands from Beijing that she retract the remarks – something she refused to do.
In response, Beijing suspended imports of Japanese seafood, advised citizens not to travel or study in Japan, and cut intergovernmental and culture exchanges.


Takaichi’s latest remarks also echo Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi’s statement on Friday that the Japanese government’s basic position was “exactly as stated in the 1972 Joint Communique, and it is no more, no less than that”.
Nevertheless, the Chinese foreign ministry saw Motegi’s statement as evasive and perfunctory.
“They cannot even manage to fully reiterate the Japanese side’s stance,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Monday.
“Japan is paying mere lip service while acting unilaterally and arbitrarily, which is completely unacceptable to the Chinese side. On matters of fundamental principle, Japan must not have any delusion that it can get away with deception or ambiguity.”
China has pressured Japan to give an “honest, accurate and complete” clarification of its “consistent position” on Taiwan.
Beijing has maintained that simply saying that the November 7 remarks “do not change the government’s consistent position” is “far from enough”.
“What China and the international community want clarified is: what exactly is Japan’s so-called consistent position? Does Japan still adhere to the one-China principle?” Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said last month.
Mao said Japan should “honestly, accurately and fully clarify” its position and that any “attempt to gloss over details or evade substance by referring only to abstract concepts in order to deceive others will not work”.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the United States and Japan, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state. But Washington is opposed to any attempt to take the self-ruled island by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons.
Sino-Japanese relations have long been rocked by various historical and geopolitical factors, including wartime grievances, territorial disputes, Japan’s moves to expand the role of its self-defence forces and rising nationalist sentiment on both sides.
Additional reporting by Vanessa Cai


Red carpet vs empty tarmac: Xi’s US welcome fuels debate over Takaichi’s no-show reception

US tightens Japan, South Korea ties ahead of Trump-Xi summit

Shadow of Xi summit hangs over Trump’s high-stakes talks with Japan’s Takaichi

US, Japan and South Korea launch economic-security talks before Xi summit

China-Japan relations

Japan’s Sanae Takaichi moves to ease weeks of tensions with China over the Taiwan Strait

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae has told the Japanese parliament that Tokyo’s position on Taiwan remains unchanged. Photo: Reuters

What US-Japan military exercises can tell us about their plans for a Taiwan conflict

US Typhon missile launchers were stationed in Japan as part of this year’s Exercise Resolute Dragon. Photo: Reuters

US Marines pictured with missile systems deployed on Ishigaki in September during Exercise Resolute Dragon in September. Photo: Kyodo

Chinese and Japanese coastguard ships in fresh confrontation near disputed Diaoyu Islands

The uninhabited islands are the scene of regular confrontations. Photo: Kyodo

China warns internal affairs off limits after report Trump asks Takaichi to ‘temper’ tone

Tokyo on Thursday rejected a report that US President Donald Trump had asked Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to “temper” her tone on Taiwan. Photo: Kyodo

China-Japan row widens at UN as Taiwan remarks called ‘greatest challenge’ to ties

China escalated its diplomatic offensive against Japan at the United Nations, with ambassador Fu Cong sending a second letter to Secretary General Antonio Guterres about Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on Taiwan. Photo: Getty Images

Sanae Takaichi speaks at her first press conference as Japan’s prime minister. Photo: AFP

Beijing demands clarity from Japan on one-China principle as diplomatic row escalates

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (centre) has said she “didn’t intend to mention any specifics” about Taiwan when asked about her controversial comments that sparked a diplomatic row with Beijing. Photo: EPA

News

China

Diplomacy

Tokyo’s position on the island is unchanged, the Japanese prime minister says in an apparent climbdown


Tokyo’s position on the island is unchanged, the Japanese prime minister says in an apparent climbdown.


Japan’s Sanae Takaichi moves to ease weeks of tensions with China over the Taiwan Strait

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Tokyo’s position on the island is unchanged, the Japanese prime minister says in an apparent climbdown

Tokyo’s position on the island is unchanged, the Japanese prime minister says in an apparent climbdown