BEIJING (Reuters) -China’s foreign ministry on Thursday demanded Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi retract what it called her “egregious” remarks related to Taiwan, warning that otherwise Japan “must bear all consequences” for the comments.
Takaichi sparked a diplomatic row with Beijing with remarks in parliament last week that a Chinese attack on Taiwan could amount to a “survival-threatening situation” and trigger a potential military response from Tokyo.
In Beijing, foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a press conference that Takaichi’s remarks represented a “crude interference” in China’s internal affairs and dealt a “heavy blow” to bilateral relations.
Beijing claims democratically-governed Taiwan as its own and has not ruled out using force to take control of the island. Taiwan’s government rejects Beijing’s claims and says only its people can decide the island’s future.
“Should Japan dare to intervene militarily in the Taiwan Strait situation, it will constitute an act of aggression, and China will strike back decisively,” Lin said.
There has been little sign this week that tensions over Takaichi’s comments were easing.
A post on a social media account affiliated with Chinese state broadcaster CCTV on Wednesday called Takaichi a “troublemaker” and warned that she would “have to pay the price” if she continued to “spew shit without any boundaries.”
Meanwhile, senior political figures in Tokyo have called for the expulsion of China’s Consul General in Osaka, Xue Jian, who shared a news article about Takaichi’s remarks and commented: “The dirty head that sticks itself in must be cut off”.
Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi called Xue’s comment “regrettable”.
Japan will “continue to strongly urge the Chinese side to take appropriate action so that this does not affect the broad direction of Japan-China relations,” Motegi said at a press conference on Wednesday in Canada, on the sidelines of a G7 meeting.
He did not give an answer when asked if Xue should be expelled.
(Reporting by Mei Mei Chu; Additional reporting by Kantaro Komiya in Tokyo; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Kate Mayberry)
