Takaichi Tensions Push China–japan Relations Into Sharper Rivalry
Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae’s November 2025 remarks on Taiwan pushed china–japan relations into a sharper phase. Takaichi said a Chinese attack on Taiwan could constitute a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan and refused to retract the statement.
China demanded that Takaichi withdraw the remarks. Japan did not do so, and the dispute moved beyond diplomacy into military signaling, with each side reading the other’s moves as preparation for conflict.
Takaichi and Taiwan
Takaichi, Japan’s prime minister, used the legal phrase “survival-threatening situation” in November 2025 when she spoke about a Chinese attack on Taiwan. The formulation could permit deployment of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces. China pressed for a retraction, but Takaichi stood by her comments.
That exchange became the clearest break point in the relationship. Neither China nor Japan wants war, but the danger now lies in the growing belief in each capital that the other is preparing for one.
Japan’s missiles and Yonaguni
Japan deepened Beijing’s concern in March 2026, when Japan deployed its first upgraded Type-12 land-to-ship missiles. The missiles have a range of about 1,000 kilometers, and Beijing is especially focused on Japan’s plans to place missiles on Yonaguni, Japan’s westernmost island, about 110 km from Taiwan.
Chinese officials see those moves alongside Japan’s wider military posture. Japan’s deployment is being interpreted in Beijing as evidence that Tokyo is becoming a more active military player in the First Island Chain.
JS Ikazuchi and Yasukuni Shrine
On April 17, the Japanese destroyer JS Ikazuchi passed through the Taiwan Strait. China’s Foreign Ministry, Defense Ministry, and Eastern Theatre Command all condemned the transit, and China launched combat-readiness patrols in the East China Sea afterward. China also sent warships near Okinawa after the destroyer’s passage.
Shortly after the April 17 incident, Takaichi sent ritual offerings to Yasukuni Shrine and other Japanese officials visited the shrine. China condemned the offerings and the visits. The shrine honors Japan’s war dead, including convicted Class-A war criminals, and that history has long made it a flash point for China and South Korea.
What happens next is less a single event than a test of restraint: China and Japan still maintain deep economic ties, but the next move from either capital will be read through a military lens, not just a diplomatic one.
