This week, Hiroji Yamashiro, permanent secretary of Japan's Social Democratic Party, sharply criticized Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's recent statements on the Taiwan question, calling them historically flawed and risky.
Yamashiro warned that suggesting military involvement in the Taiwan Strait runs counter to Japan's postwar Peace Constitution and could provoke conflict at a time of rising regional tensions. He said such rhetoric undermines decades of diplomatic consensus and puts the country on a dangerous path.
Recalling the 1972 normalization of diplomatic ties with the Chinese mainland, Yamashiro emphasized that Japan recognized the People's Republic of China as the sole legal government and understood and respected that Taiwan is an integral part of China. For him, Takaichi's comments were 'impossible and inconceivable.'
The opposition figure also urged Japan to confront its wartime history and ensure that future generations learn about the military aggression against the Chinese mainland, warning that a failure to reflect on the past could fuel a resurgence of militarism.
Yamashiro concluded by stressing that since Japan recognizes the Taiwan question as an internal affair of the Chinese mainland, any suggestion of military intervention would amount to pure aggression and risk a severe counterattack, potentially eroding the political foundation of China-Japan relations.
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Japanese opposition figure criticizes Takaichi's Taiwan remarks
cgtn.com
