Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is dangerously attempting to change Japan's course and steer it toward the hidden rocks of history.
Her recent Taiwan-related remarks in the Diet are far from a mere "slip of the tongue" or "momentary lapse." They constitute a high-stakes political gamble that uses the country's future and regional peace as chips to open Pandora's box. This is not only a blatant betrayal of Japan's pacifist constitution but also a crude interference in China's internal affairs and a deliberate provocation against the post-war international order. History's warnings are not far behind us. Takaichi's attempt to reverse the course of history is doomed to fail.
Takaichi's Taiwan-related remarks are erroneous and egregious, setting several "firsts" for a Japanese leader since Japan's defeat in 1945. She has now become the first one to openly promote in an official setting the notion that "a Taiwan contingency is a Japanese contingency," to explicitly link it to the exercise of the right of collective self-defense, to express ambitions of a potential armed intervention in the Taiwan question, and to issue a military threat against China. Such reckless and provocative statements fundamentally undermine the political foundation of China–Japan relations and have triggered strong indignation and condemnation among the Chinese people.
Takaichi's move is by no means an isolated personal act. Behind it lies a right-wing undercurrent within Japan that seeks to resurrect militarism and completely break free from the constraints of the post-war framework. What Takaichi and her ilk truly covet is not the peace and security of the Japanese people, but the manufacture of "external threats" to pave the way for revising the pacifist constitution, normalizing the military, and steering Japan back onto the perilous path of becoming a "military power." The Taiwan question is merely one of the leverage points they attempt to use to pry open this dangerous agenda. By deliberately hyping up a sense of crisis and willingly tying the Japanese public to a war chariot that harms neighboring countries, their ultimate goal is to break through the constraints of the pacifist constitution and unleash the monster of war once again.
The hard-won fruits of peace must not be taken for granted, and the Japanese public has not been fully deceived by the ambitions of the right-wing tide. Takaichi's reckless remarks immediately triggered heightened vigilance and strong backlash within Japan. From the harsh criticism voiced by the leader of the largest opposition party, to the deep concerns expressed by senior lawmakers within the Liberal Democratic Party, to the anguish of scholars and the anger of ordinary citizens, these reactions collectively demonstrate that rational voices and forces committed to safeguarding peace still exist within Japanese society. The calls for "Takaichi's resignation" and "No to war-mongering" are a powerful response from the Japanese public against leaders steering the country onto a dangerous path.
History is a mirror. The war of aggression launched by Japanese militarism in the last century not only brought tremendous suffering to the peoples of Asian countries but also caused Japan itself to pay a devastating price, nearly plunging the nation into an irrecoverable abyss. Japan's post-war economic recovery and prosperity were made possible precisely because the country chose the path of peaceful development and made a solemn pledge to the world that it would "never wage war again." This commitment is the cornerstone of Japan's return to the international community and the fundamental guarantee of its standing in the world.
Today, Takaichi and the right-wing forces she represents are attempting to undermine this cornerstone. They show no reverence for history and selectively forget the cruelty of war, seeking to gain political advantage by playing with fire. But they must understand that today's China is no longer the China of a century ago, and the global landscape is no longer what it once was. No one should underestimate the resolve, the will, and the ability of the Chinese people to defend their national sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Taiwan question is at the very core of China's core interests and is a red line and bottom line that must not be crossed. Any attempt to meddle in China's internal affairs and obstruct China's reunification will be met with a strong fightback.
We solemnly urge Sanae Takaichi and her government to deeply reflect on history, retract their erroneous remarks, cease creating provocations on China-related issues, and take concrete actions to correct their mistakes so as to safeguard the political foundation of China-Japan relations. If they stubbornly persist, go further down the wrong path, and insist on making themselves enemies of the 1.4 billion Chinese people, then what awaits them will inevitably be a failure even more complete than that of eighty years ago.