Overview
- At a Dec. 25 briefing, Defense Ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang called on “peace-loving nations and peoples” to contain a perceived revival of Japanese militarism and warned of resolute countermeasures to any harassment or provocations.
- His remarks followed reports that a senior aide in the Japanese prime minister’s office said Japan should have nuclear weapons and that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi would not rule out introducing nuclear-powered submarines.
- Zhang criticized a recent Japanese defense report that highlights Chinese military activity and includes plans to deploy mobile radar in Okinawa by 2026, asserting China’s defense spending is moderate and its operations lawful.
- Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian this week linked the nuclear comment to Takaichi’s push to revise key security documents, accelerate defense outlays to 2% of GDP, relax arms-export rules, and consider revisiting the Three Non-Nuclear Principles.
- Beijing also pressed Tokyo over a reported radioactive water leak at the Fugen reactor and noted China’s ratification of the UN high-seas biodiversity treaty as a sign of responsible multilateral engagement.